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VOL. XXXIII • NO. 264 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

QUAKES DAMAGE 700 SCHOOLS—DEPED By Julito G. Rada and Macon Ramos-Araneta THE Department of Education, facing shortage of school shelters in earthquake-ravaged areas in Mindanao, said Monday it needed at least P1.6 billion to replace 500 classrooms and repair 700

school buildings. Education Secretary Leonor Briones said she has requested funds from the National Disaster Coordinating Committee under the Office of the President and is studying whether the agency’s own budget can be used to repair damaged schools. DepEd officials said it would take

“more than a year” to build replacement buildings, each worth P2.5 million, which can withstand tremors and typhoons. The Oct. 3 quakes, whose magnitudes all measured above 6, left at least 29 dead and sent some 28,000 people to evacuation centers, said the national disaster coordinating agency. Next page

BITTER MEMORIES. The Philippines, an archipelagic nation of 7,100 islands plus, joins the rest of the world in marking today World Tsunami Awareness Day, with that unnerving devastation 43 years ago—still fresh in memory racks—that jabbed 700 kilometers of the Moro Gulf coconut-dotted shoreline in Mindanao, leaving some 8,000 dead or missing. Top right, some unidentified Samaritan doing their best helping earthquake victims in Makilala, North Cotabato with steaming rice broth while the Marawi area, (below it) trying to rise from ruins from the five-month siege in 2017 is whacked Monday, from FB page of Baeshora AimAce, by a surly squall. File photo, Geonarri Solmerano

World Tsunami Day: Moro Gulf remembered By Joyce Pangco Pañares

ASEAN pushes sea code 10-member bloc wants binding deal in 3 years

“WHEN the sea had spent its fury and rolled back to its normal cadence, about 8,000 were dead or missing, while some 10,000 were injured and at least 90,000 were homeless.” This was how Victor Badillo and Zinnia Astilla, both from the Manila Observatory, described the effects of “the most disastrous tsunami experienced by the Philippines” on Aug. 17, 1976, when a magnitude 7.9 to 8.2 earthquake struck, with its epicenter in Sultan Kudarat. Their observations gain special significance today, Nov. 5, a day the United Nations has declared as World Tsunami Awareness Day. “Deaths were caused by drowning. With the collapse of their homes around midnight, the victims found themselves in dark, turbulent waters. This is a case where the waves accomplished more damage as they left,” Badillo and Astilla wrote in their 1978 paper “Moro Gulf Tsunami of 17 August 1976.” “One father had clung to a tree and

By MJ Blancaﬂor

EADERS of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations want to finish a binding Code of Conduct in the South China Sea within three years or earlier.

Pork or ‘parked’ funds? Ping asks By Macon Ramos-Araneta SENATOR Panfilo Lacson said Monday he will ask the Budget department about the P20 billion in “parked funds” in the 2020 national budget. “I will have it clarified, and I have all the items, all the descriptions of the appropriations. Our question is how they intend to spend it,” Lacson said. “Remember that last year, the other financial assistance to the LGUs, amounted to P16 billion. When the HOR Turn to A6

LEADERS’ SYNERGY. President Rodrigo Duterte interacts with one of the leaders who attended the gala dinner at the Impact Exhibition and Convention Center in Nonthaburi, Thailand on Sunday. Malacañang Photo

Du30, other leaders skip summit with US; Trump no-show By MJ Blancaﬂor SOUTHEAST Asian leaders including President Rodrigo Duterte skipped the Association of Southeast Asian NationsUnited States Summit on Monday, after American President Donald Trump was a no-show. Trump was represented by national security adviser Robert O’Brien while Pres-

ident Duterte was represented by Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. Among the state leaders, only Laos Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, and Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha were present during the ASEAN-US Summit. The other seven leaders skipped the meeting.

Trump’s absence for the second straight year in ASEAN will not affect the countries’ view of US as an ally, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III told reporters in a press conference. “I don’t think it affects the view of the ASEAN about the reliability of the US. For reliability, we had better look into their actions rather than in to their presNext page ence,” Dominguez said.

MRT 3 emits smoke, offloads 530 By Joel E. Zurbano

SALUTE TO THE TRICOLORS. The National Parks Development Committee and Salute to a Clean Flag advocacy group as well as children and youth groups—including (inset) Olympic weightlifting and airwoman Hidilyn Diaz—attend the flag ceremony at the Rizal Monument at the bayside Luneta Park on Monday—in line with the celebration of National Children’s Month and the country’s hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games due to begin later this month. Norman Cruz

AROUND 530 passengers were forced to alight from a Metro Railway Transit 3 train on Monday afternoon after it emitted smoke while on the northbound lane approaching the Santolan station in Quezon City. “At 4:08 p.m. today [Nov. 4], a smoke emission from one of our trains was reported by our train driver at Santolan Station [Northbound],” MRT 3 management said in a statement. “Rest assured that our rehabili-

tation and maintenance provider, Sumitomo-Mitsubishi Heavy, will conduct a thorough investigation regarding this incident, and implement measures to prevent this from happening again. We will apprise you of further updates. We apologize for the inconvenience,” it added. A female passenger, identified only as Aurora, said: “We were about to board a train here in Santolan station when MRT personnel told us they temporarily stopped the operation because of the problem.” Turn to A6

This was the sentiment expressed in the ASEAN common statement ready by President Rodrigo Duterte at the 22nd ASEAN-China Summit held in Thailand on Nov. 3. Chief Presidential Legal Counsel and Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said the 10-member regional bloc greeted China on its 70th anniversary and said ASEAN and China should improve further discussions on political security through regular high-level meetings and coordination. The President also reaffirmed ASEAN’s commitment to maintain and promote peace, security, stability and safety in the South China Sea, he said. Next page

Pork from China brought on ASF By Othel V. Campos and Rio N. Araja THE outbreak of African swine fever in the Philippines was caused by smuggled pork from China, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said Monday. In a press briefing, Dar said illegal shipments seized by authorities at the Port of Manila in October were a clear indication that the virus originated from China. The pork, declared as tomato paste, later tested positive for ASF. Next page

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News

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

PNP OIC fires cop in drug mess personnel that figured in a highly irregular activity in Antipolo City early this year and were recommended for dismissal by the Internal Affairs Service as a consequence of their actions.” De Guzman was among seven policemen, three of whom were assigned in Pampanga, who was implicated in a drug operation in Inarawan, Antipolo City, on May 4, 2019. Before De Guzman’s dismissal, three of his comrades who also figured in the irregular drug operations in Mexico, Pampanga, during the incumbency of PNP Chief Oscar Albayalde were also dismissed.

They were identified as Msgt Donald Roque, Msgt Rommel Vital and Corporal Romeo Encarnacio Guerrero, all lieutenants of Albayalde, then provincial director of Pampanga. Gamboa said De Guzman was allowed to explain his side during the investigation, but he failed to absolve himself. He said a copy of the dismissal would be handed to De Guzman, and he had 15 days to reply. “He has, I think, 10 or 15 days to reply and if he doesn’t, then the dismissal becomes effective,” Gamboa said.

ASEAN... From A1

source of tourists.” The Palace on Sunday shrugged off China’s move to block a Liberian-flagged ship manned by a Filipino captain in Panatag Shoal, saying it does not concern the country. Panelo said the alleged blocking of the Greek-owned oil tanker M/T Green Aura was not an affront to the country’s sovereignty, even if Panatag Shoal lies about 120 miles west of Subic Bay and is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. “In a way, it’s not our concern, because it’s not a Philippine vessel,” Panelo said on the sidelines of the 35th ASEAN Summit in Thailand. “Well, for as long as they do not touch the Philippine ship or vessel, it would be the concern of that country that carries the flag of that particular vessel,” he added. Although the Chinese vessel insisted that Panatag Shoal is within Chinese territory, Panelo maintained that the Philippines has nothing to do with the incident. Maritime expert Jay Batongbacal slammed Panelo for his remarks, saying the Palace official should refrain from speaking about foreign policy matters. Batongbacal, who also serves as director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, said the government should take action on the incident because the country “relies on foreign-flagged vessels for international trade” and China’s actions undermine the maritime interests of the Philippines. “This is just so wrong on several levels. When will someone stop Panelo from speaking out of turn on matters of foreign policy?” he asked in a Twitter post Monday. He also said the Philippines should not stay silent in the face of China’s assertion of jurisdiction over Panatag Shoal, which was considered a traditional fishing ground in the 2016 arbitral ruling. “Silence on China’s assertion of ‘jurisdiction’ against a Greek vessel, a third party, is

effectively a sign of acquiescence to such jurisdiction before such third party; and in this case, due to publicity, effectively before the whole world,” he said. In response, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said getting involved in the incident would harm the livelihood of Filipino mariners. “We stick our noses in and 400,000 Filipino mariners get embroiled in a maritime issue about which our only interest is the safety of the parts of the crew who just happen to be Filipino and were not harmed,” he said. “Want the employment 400,000 Pinoy mariners to hang in the balance of the games an idiot native media likes to play? Now that’s harming their livelihoods,” he added. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the incident should not be “blown out of proportion or sensationalized,” as M/T Green Aura was able to pass through the area despite the encounter with a Chinese vessel. Lorenzana said that an official report on the alleged blocking of M/T Green Aura has been forwarded to the National Task Force on the West Philippine Sea. The M/T Green Aura was shooed away last Sept. 30 by a Chinese vessel which identified itself as a “Chinese Navy warship.” The ship’s captain, Manolo Ebora, insisted that he can pass through the area, citing the right to innocent passage, but the “Chinese Navy” insisted that they change course. Two Chinese ships criss-crossed the oil tanker, while another temporarily blocked its way. Ebora, however, ignored the order and eventually got through the Chinese ships. Panelo said the incident would not affect the continuing negotiations on the creation of a Code of Conduct between the ASEANmember states and China.

Quakes... From A1

In related developments: • Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana assured the public the government still had sufficient stocks of relief goods to aid families affected by the quakes in Mindanao and ruled out the need to turn to the international community for help in the relief efforts. • Insurance Commissioner Dennis Funa said he activated the Disaster Response Mechanism to expedite quick insurance claims for the speedy recovery of the residents of Mindanao following three major tremors. Lorenzana said government has sufficient resources. “Plus there are local donors who have given donations while others are on standby,” he said. Lorenzana was earlier designated by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, acting as the government’s officer-in-charge, as the point person for the immediate delivery of assistance to the victims of the series of quakes in Mindanao. The DND chief also clarified that his statement on Sunday stating that the earthquakes in Mindanao could be considered a humanitarian crisis was taken from an unverified source. “Yes, my initial statement of (Mindanao earthquakes being a) humanitarian crisis was taken from an unverified source. Undersecretary (Ricardo) Jalad of the NDRRMC (National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council) who was there until Sunday reported that it was not. “Not all affected families are in the evacuation centers but opted to stay near their homes,” he added. More relief goods are coming from Manila which are being transported by the Department of Social Welfare and Development. “There is sufficient relief goods now in Kidapawan [North Cotabato] and the DSWD is transporting some more from Manila and other regions,” the DND chief pointed out. Lorenzana directed the military to set up checkpoints in the quake-affected areas in Mindanao to properly record the arrival of relief goods and workers. The checkpoints will also ensure that only legitimate and authorized relief workers are granted access to evacuation centers and receive relief goods and supplies for distribution to the evacuees.

“The checkpoints will also screen those kibitzers or ‘usiseros’,” the DND chief disclosed. The DND chief said he had instructed relevant authorities on the proper management of evacuation centers to ensure order in the distribution of relief goods in wake of reports that some people were rushing to relief vehicles and getting anything they could . “I have also directed the military to remove the people from the highways begging and blocking vehicles bringing relief goods and bring them to their communities so they can be properly attended to,” Lorenzana stressed. Relief organizations, he said, could leave their donations to troops for distribution to the affected families or if they want to do it themselves, military units could direct them to areas needing their assistance, he added. Lorenzana said the AFP, especially the Army, had deployed a task force in Kidapawan, Cotabato coordinating the military’s operation with ongoing government relief operations. In response to the series of earthquakes in Mindanao, the Insurance Commission mobilized the Agarang Proseso, Benepisyo ay Sigurado Program for the setting up of claims action center for simplified and quick claims where insured victims can go for their legitimate insurance claims. The claims action center will be headquartered at the Insurance Commission Davao district office and will be operational starting Nov. 4. According to the latest reports from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, 12 persons died during the magnitude earthquake on Oct. 29, while another nine died due to the magnitude 6.5 tremor on Oct. 31, and the number of infrastructure damaged by the quakes was placed at 28,932. Meanwhile, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said it was likely the proposed creation of the Department of Disaster Resilience would be approved before Congress goes on Christmas break. Sotto, one of the authors of the proposed measure in the Senate, said his proposed Senate Bill No. 245 provides that the DDR would become the primary government institution tasked to ensure “safe, adaptive, and disaster-resilient communities.” A key feature of this measure is a “clear system of responsibility for disaster pre-

paredness and response classified into four levels—from Levels 1 to 4 or from the municipal/city mayor all the way up to the Secretary of Disaster Resilience.” “This directly answers the oft-repeated question in times of disaster: Who is in charge?” Sotto said. Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto for his part said the Senate should conduct its own post-earthquake assessment—to find out if the Calamity Fund in this year’s budget and the one for next year is enough to help the people and places hit by the recent Southern Mindanao earthquakes. “We should conduct an inventory of funds. There may still be money left in this year’s Calamity Fund for relief operations, to sustain the day-to-day needs of victims, but reconstruction would require bigger funding,” said Recto. Financing-wise, he noted there was a big difference between buying grocery items and rebuilding damaged roads. “The truth is that typhoons and earthquakes do not only rearrange the lay of the land, but also reconfigure budget numbers,” said Recto. He said a movement in oil prices and inflation rate may, for example, alter the budget but not in an intensity that a big calamity, like the earthquake which rocked Mindanao, can trigger spending adjustments. This year’s Calamity Fund—officially the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund—is P25.1 billion, consisting of P20 billion in new appropriations and P5.1 billion left over from the 2018 national budget. For next year, the proposed appropriations is P20 billion, of which, P3.5 billion is for Marawi, the same amount earmarked this year. The Senator said he is proposing that whatever amount Congress and the Executive will earmark for rehabilitation and reconstruction be clearly tagged as such, to create a firewall that will prevent it from being used for other purposes. It can be called Comprehensive Aid to Repair Earthquake Damage or CARED. Having CARED in the 2020 budget will send the message of hope to the intrepid people whose homes are destroyed but whose spirit is not that help is on the way. That there is nothing to be scared of because of CARED.

looking like a cliff. They were surprised to see the water above them, rushing toward them,” Maulana said in Filipino. Undersecretary Renato Solidum Jr., officer-in-charge of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, said all coastal areas in the Philippines can be affected by tsunamis generated mostly by under-the-sea earthquakes, sometimes by submarine landslides or volcanic eruptions. “When the Moro Gulf tsunami happened more than four decades ago, it took only about two to five minutes after the

earthquake for the first wave of tsunami to arrive at the coastline of Sultan Kudarat. In other areas, it took a bit longer,” Solidum told Manila Standard. The natural signs—shake, drop and roar—have been consistent, Solidum said, referring to the strong shaking of the ground, the drop or sudden change in sea level, and the roaring sound of incoming waves. The Philippines, as an archipelago located along the Pacific Ocean’s Ring of Fire, is vulnerable to disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis.

“Tsunamis cannot be prevented, but the impacts can be mitigated through community preparedness, timely warnings, and proper action. Local government units must take the lead,” Solidum said. Years ago, the agency issued a comic book to inform the public about tsunamis. Today, they are launching a tsunami analytics mobile application to mark World Tsunami Awareness Day. The United Nations declared Nov. 5 as the World Tsunami Awareness Day in honor of a true story from Japan— “Inamura-no-hi”

By Francisco Tuyay

HE Pampanga-based police officer who allegedly figured in illegal drug operations in Central Luzon and then was linked to a fake drug bust in Antipolo City has been dismissed, an official said Monday.

Philippine National Police Officerin-Charge Archie Gamboa said Police Lt. Joven de Guzman was dropped from the rolls for committing an administrative offense arising from the Antipolo City fiasco. “De Guzman was initially penalized,

Du30,... From A1

Duterte also missed the “family photo” session at the 22nd ASEAN Plus Three Summit, a meeting with the regional states along with China, Japan, and Republic of Korea. The program was scheduled at 8:30 a.m. but the President arrived at 8:53 a.m. Duterte’s spokesman Salvador Panelo said the Chief Executive was late for the photo session because he passed by the restroom. During the meeting, Duterte commended China, Japan, and South Korea for their support to ASEAN-member states. US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross insisted Monday that his country remained “extremely engaged” with Asia despite Trump’s decision to skip the summit with ASEAN. Ross and O’Brien are the most senior members of the Washington delegation in Bangkok for the ASEAN meeting, also attended by Indian, South Korean and Japanese leaders. Previous meetings have been attended by the president or vice president. Trump is accused of retreating from the region after pulling out of a major Asia-Pacific trade pact almost immediately after taking office. But Ross pushed back against criticism that America has turned its back on Asian allies. “The Trump administration is extremely engaged in and fully committed to this region,” he said at a business forum on the sidelines of the ASEAN meeting Monday. “We continue to negotiate trade deals with countries in this region.” At the US-ASEAN meeting later in the day, O’Brien addressed several Southeast Asian foreign ministers after most ASEAN leaders failed to turn up. Trump has railed against countries in Asia for building massive trade surpluses with the US and has vowed to pursue bilateral deals in the region in favor of sprawling pacts. He signed a free trade agreement with Japan earlier this year and also renegotiated the terms of a trade deal with South Korea. Soon after he took office Trump pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)—which would have been the world’s biggest free trade pact—calling the deal a “job killer.” It has since been reborn as a watered down deal without the US, and another China-backed trade pact is now set to be the world’s largest when it is signed. The 16-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which could be finalized next year, includes 30 percent of global GDP and half of the world’s people. It includes all 10 ASEAN states plus China, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand—notably excluding the US. Washington remains locked in its bruising trade war with China, with both slides slapping tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars worth of goods. Ross said an agreement to row back some of those tariffs was “very far along.” Trump has said the deal could be soon signed with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, possibly in the US state of Iowa. Trump attended the ASEAN summit in the Philippines in 2017 while Vice President Mike Pence appeared last year. A senior White House official denied that Washington had snubbed this year’s event, saying Trump and Pence are unavailable because they are “very engaged in campaigning” for a string of governors’ races. With AFP

World Tsunami... From A1

his children in turn clung to him. When the waves receded, he was all alone. This was a tale that was repeated many times over,” they wrote. Nash Maulana, Manila Standard’s Mindanao-based reporter, recalled the story told by his friend Dats Maridul, a tsunami surivor who was then living in Lebak, Sultan Kudarat when the disaster struck 43 years ago. “They saw the water disappear, the shore

with the subsequent findings of grave misconduct satisfying all the requirements to impose the penalty of dismissal,” Gamboa said in a statement. “I have ordered the dismissal of De Guzman, of the Antipolo City Police Station, who led a team of seven PNP

In particular, Duterte reaffirmed the regional bloc’s shared hope to conclude an effective and substantive Code of Conduct within three years. He also reiterated his suggestion that ASEAN members exercise self-restraint despite territorial disputes over the South China Sea—even as he spoke out against reclamation and militarization in the disputed waters. Aside from the Philippines, other claimants to some parts of the South China Sea are Brunei Darussalam, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam while China claims virtually all of the South China Sea as part of its territory. The Philippines is claiming three islands in the disputed sea—Mischief Reef, Second Thomas Shoal and Reed Bank, which are part of the country’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. Mischief Reef is also known as Panganiban Reef in the Philippines, Second Thomas Shoal is known as Ayungin Shoal and Reed Bank as Recto Bank. In 2016, the Philippines won the arbitral case on the territorial dispute against China after the United Nations Arbitral Tribunal favored the Philippines. The decision stated that the three islands “are submerged at high tide, form part of the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf of the Philippines, and are not overlapped by any possible entitlement of China.” China, however, has refused to recognize the court or its decision. Meanwhile, Duterte said the region “is also anticipating the full and effective implementation of the ASEAN-China Trade Area since the world’s second largest economy is the regional bloc’s largest trading partner, third largest external source foreign direct investments and an important

Task force seeks probe of terror-friendly court judges AN OFFICIAL of the National Task Force to End the Local Communist Armed Conflict has appealed to the Supreme Court to probe the judges who had been dismissing the cases filed against communist terrorists. Maj. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. said this was better than looking into the actions of a Quezon City judge who issued search warrants for the offices and homes of activists in Bacolod and Escalante. Parlade made the statement in response to Bayan Muna’s call to review the action of Quezon City Regional Trial Court Executive Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert who issued seven warrants to allow the police to search the offices of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Kilusang Mayo Uno, Anakpawis, Gabriela, the National Federation of Sugar Workers and the house of Kadamay members in Manila last week. “These communist front groups have been harassing and threatening not only the judges of the courts but also fiscals and state prosecutors in the past,” Parlade said in a statement. “These Kamatayan [Makabayan] bloc use their armed goons, the NPA [New People’s Army], to threaten the families of fiscals and judges with death if only to force them to decide in favor of arrested CTGs [communist terrorist groups]. This is why they are called terrorists for terrorizing people who stand in their way.” Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police on Monday challenged the communist-front organizations to prove in court that the pieces of evidence found during last week’s raid in their offices in Bacolod City were planted. “Legitimacy is a status which they can prove during the trial if ever this will be pursued in the courts. The planting of evidence, stolen items are the usual allegations when we conduct search warrants. That’s why the law provides you should bring media members, local government units who will witness the service of the search warrant,” PNP officer-in-charge, Lt. Gen. Archie Gamboa told reporters in Camp Crame. During the search, operatives seized 32 assorted firearms, three hand grenades, two 40mm grenade launchers, assorted live ammunition, subversive documents and paraphernalia. Parlade said the bullying and intimidation tactics of the NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, was now a thing of the past as the government was using “the rule of law to neutralize their tactics. “That bullying strategy is over. The rule of law is here to catch up with you. So Bayan Muna should start respecting the decisions of the magistrate. Their bullying will not work this time when people already understand their duplicitous and deceptive nature,” said Parlade, who is also Armed Forces of the Philippines Deputy Chief-of-Staff for Civil-Military Operations. PNA

Pork... From A1

Dar said the infected pork was likely dumped in Rodriguez, Rizal, where hog raisers fed it to their pigs. On Monday, Agriculture officials said samples of skinless longganisa and Pignic hotdog from Pampanga-based Mekeni Food Corp. tested positive for ASF. Ronnie Domingo, DA’s Bureau of Animal Industry officer in charge, said results of the Oct. 25 tests showed the samples of Mekeni’s two pork-based products seized at the Pork of Calapan and from its processing plant were ASF-positive. “We still do not know the source of the meat,” he said. “That would be part of the investigation.” “With these developments, the DA and Department of Health through the Food and Drug Administration have agreed to disclose jointly said test results, and name the manufacturer, which is Mekeni Food Corp.,” the DA statement read. Mekeni, which has pulled its products from the market since Oct. 26, promised to establish the source of the ASF virus found in samples of its products. Mekeni said operations in its pork processing area have been suspended since Oct. 26, and that the facility was being cleansed and disinfected. “A third-party company had also been engaged to do swabbing and testing of the facility before we resume operations,” it said in its statement. Mekeni said it will also continue to work with the Bureau of Animal Industry, National Meat Inspection Service, and the Food and Drug Administration, as well as other industry stakeholders for the implementation of a more comprehensive plan to mitigate the spread of the ASF. or the burning of the rice sheaves. During an 1854 earthquake, a farmer saw the tide receding, a sign of a looming tsunami, and he set fire to his harvested rice to warn villagers to run to high ground. “The tsunami app is primarily for local government units. This follows the Hazard Hunter PH app which was made available to all Filipinos in July,” Solidum said. “Now you don’t have to burn your harvested rice just to raise the alarm. You have all the hazard information on your fingertips with these apps,” he added.

News PAO to file additional Dengvaxia complaints By Rey E. Requejo PUBLIC Attorney’s Office Chief Persida Acosta on Monday revealed they would be filing more criminal complaints before the Department of Justice concerned former and current officials of the Department of Health involved in the controversial mass vaccination of the anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia believed to have resulted in deaths of recipients. “We will continue to file cases. This Friday we will be filing more complaints,” Acosta vowed. The PAO had filed a total of 50 complaints before the DOJ since 2018 on behalf of families of those who died or fell ill after getting shots of the Dengvaxia. “We already filed 50 cases before the DOJ,” Acosta said, representing 50 persons out of the 147 dead victims autopsied by the PAO forensics team and one survivor who all received shots of the still experimental dengue vaccine. At present, the DOJ panel chaired by Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Toefel Austria is hearing the 4th batch of Dengvaxia complaints filed on behalf of the families of 12 dead children and 11-year-old survivor Mark Joseph Estandarte. The other dead children are Aldrid Aberia, Micaella Mainit, Eira Mae Galoso, Riceza Salgo, Leiden Alcabasa, Jonnel Dacquel, Kenchie Ocfemia, Angelica Pulumbarit, John Marky Ferrer, Maricel Manriza, Charmel Flordeliz and Annaliza Silverio. Under the complaints, the respondents, who include Iloilo First District Rep. Janette Garin and Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, are accused of reckless imprudence resulting to homicide under Article 365 of the Revised Penal Code; torture resulting in the death of a person and torture committed against children under Republic Act 9745, the Anti-Torture Act of 2009; and for violating RA 7394, the Consumer Act of the Philippines, particularly, the mislabeling of drugs and devices, liability for defective products, and liability for product and service imperfection.

House OKs several resolutions THE House of Representatives on Monday approved on third and ﬁnal reading a joint resolution extending the validity of the 2019 P3.757-trillion national budget for 2019 until Dec. 31, 2020 by a 199 vote. The House in plenary session adopted House Joint Resolution 19 that extends the life of funds allocated for the maintenance and other operating expenses and for capital outlay under the 2019 budget. House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez earlier said the House leadership will extend the validity of this year’s money measure following the months-long delay in its approval. Similarly, the House passed on third and ﬁnal reading the proposed postponement of barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections. Voting 194-6, the House adopted the Senate version of the bill that postpones the barangay and SK elections to Dec. 5, 2022. House Bill 4933 changed the date of the elections that is scheduled on May 11, 2020. The last barangay elections were held in May 2018. Last September, the House suffrage and electoral reforms committee approved the bill postponing the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections from May 2020 to May 2023. Maricel V. Cruz

Proposed 14th month pay heavy—ECOP THE Employers Confederation of the Philippines said Monday the proposed 14th month pay incentive for private sector workers was rather hefty for micro-enterprises which account for 90 percent of businesses in the country. ECOP president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., in an interview on Dobol B sa News TV aired on GMA News TV heard nationwide, said 90 percent of companies, which were microenterprises, could not afford the additional incentive. Micro-enterprise is a business operating on a very small scale, especially one with a sole proprietor and fewer than six employees. Ortiz explained that large and medium enterprises, which constituted only 2 percent of all companies in the country, could deﬁnitely provide the 14th month pay incentive. Only 8 percent of small enterprises comply with giving 13th month pay to employees, he added.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

‘Du30’s traffic powers no priority’ By Maricel V. Cruz

HE House of Representatives will not prioritize the passage of a measure that proposes to grant President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to address the worsening trafﬁc problem in Metro Manila and other major cities, Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said on Monday. Cayetano told a television interview the President had given up on the proposed emergency powers. “Not anymore because the President said he doesn’t want it anymore or you cannot attack a crisis with emergency powers when you’re in the middle of it already,” he told ANC. Duterte admitted he would not pressure Congress into giving him emergency powers to solve the trafﬁc gridlock, saying Transportation Secretary Arthur

Tugade was the one wanting such powers for the Chief Executive. Duterte also said he was no longer pursuing the plan to ask Congress to allot funds for trafﬁc-related projects because a female senator—obviously referring to Senator Grace Poe—claimed the money was prone to corruption. Instead of emergency powers, Cayetano said the House would exercise its “oversight function” to help expedite infrastructure projects which had always been

delayed by right of way issues. Cayetano said “we will push for mass transportation and we will not only pass legislation; if needed, we will use our oversight powers. There’s no reason that right of way should be a problem.” He explained “the House can step in and talk to the [city] council[s]” on possible delays in the construction of the Metro Manila subway. At a Senate hearing last September, Tugade maintained the need for emergency powers to address Metro Manila’s worsening trafﬁc problem. Tugade said the grant of emergency powers would provide for the immediate adoption of policy directions that would “normally require the amendment of existing laws and ordinances.” But Poe said there were alternative modes of procurement allowed under existing laws to which Tugade agreed. However, Tugade said the procurement could be faster with emergency powers.

Opinion

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

A formula for corruption SANTA Banana, the geniuses at the Securities and Exchange Commission are at it again! Now they are targeting the extractive industries—mining and oil firms—by giving them until Jan. 1 next year to disclose their real owners. They accuse these firms of allowing dirty money to enter the country. Recall that this year, the SEC implemented its Memorandum Circular 17 which would have required all corporations to disclose the ultimate beneficial owner or owners—defined as a natural person who ultimately owns or controls the corporation—in their General Information Sheets.

The SEC is at it again . Almost instantly, as a result of this circular, corporations, listed or not, or those wishing to register as required by law, protested, causing the SEC geniuses to delay its implementation. I have written against the SEC’s implementation of this controversial circular. I said it was illegal and unconstitutional because the commission would, in effect, be legislating something which only Congress can do. It’s a clear and perfect violation of the constitutional right to privacy. Imagine what this will do to our attempt to attract investments. It’s also a sure-fire formula for extortion of corporations suspected of hiding their true beneficial owners! It seems that the SEC, composed of lawyers, does not seem to believe that what it is doing is contrary to the law and to the good of all. Worse, even the Department of Finance seems to be supporting the SEC.

I am really surprised at Secretary Sonny Dominguez! An assistant secretary of the DOF was quoted as saying that the disclosure of beneficial ownership is an enormous task. “We appreciate its value in curbing illicit activities, and we agree with the SEC in this undertaking.” Does the DOF not realize that the memorandum is unconstitutional, a violation of the right to privacy and a deterrent to President Duterte’s move to attract foreign and local investments? The beneficial ownership declaration form requires the following information: Complete name, nationality, percentage of ownership or voting rights, residential address and tax identification number. First of all, the memorandum requiring disclosure is a legislative act. Only Congress can do this. Don’t tell me that the SEC geniuses now think they can enact laws, when their only function is to regulate and implement laws. Secondly, said circular is a flagrant attempt to violate our right to privacy. Aren’t the SEC lawyers aware of the definition of privacy by US Justice Luis Brandeis—“the right to be left alone”? The memo needs to be scrapped! President Duterte has been going on so many foreign visits just to attract investments. This circular will undo his efforts. I have no doubt that the courts will restrain the implementation of this circular. What surprises me is that the PH-EITI, the governing transparency initiative for extractive industries, also required the reporting of beneficial ownership in line with an international campaign to prevent the use of shell companies. *** With no less than five big earthquakes hitting parts of Mindanao, I commiserate with the people down South. I am sure the President is monitoring all these. He should take it upon himself to cut short his trip to Bangkok. His foremost duty is to the people. I am not taking the President to task for attending the summit. It is important that he is there. But now it is time to return and attend to his people. ***

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

Public health crisis

HE country has yet to come to terms with a public health crisis, with outbreaks of measles, dengue and polio reported in succession since the start of the year.

Since health officials declared an outbreak in February, there have been more than 40,000 cases of measles and more than 500 deaths—although the latest reports indicate the number of cases is finally falling. Since August, when a dengue epidemic was declared, more than 350,000 cases of the mosquito-borne disease have been reported, with 1,300 deaths. Then in September, polio, a deadly and extremely contagious disease, re-emerged after 19 years, with three confirmed cases. The government has moved swiftly to inoculate millions of children under the age of 5, but more ought to be done, not only by the Department of Health, but by national and local officials and the general public. On the side of the executive, some serious consideration must be given to shoring up the Department of Health’s budget, which has been cut

down to P160.15 billion in 2020, almost P10 billion less than the P169.45 billion allocated for 2019. We cannot imagine how the administration expects the department to do any better than this year, with P10 billion less in funding that could have gone into buying more vaccines and a more effective information campaign to drive up the country’s dismally low immunization rate. A few months ago, the United Nations Children’s Fund raised concerns over the country’s declining immunization coverage, saying some 2.9-million Filipino children are at risk of contracting life-threatening diseases. Measles immunization, UNICEF said, has dropped at an “alarming rate,” falling from 88 percent in 2013 to 73 percent in 2017 and less than 70 percent in 2018—far below the required 95 percent. The Health department, for its part,

should stop making the Dengvaxia scare of 2017 the scapegoat for poor immunization coverage that began declining well before that year. Media and advertising companies—as part of their corporate social responsibility programs—could help the Health department develop a truly effective information campaign that targets not only higher immunization rates, but also better hygiene in our communities. All this begins at home, of course, and local officials and residents have the responsibility to make sure their communities are clean. The type 2 polio virus, for instance, thrives in environments with poor sanitation, particularly where residents along riverbanks do not have toilets. The polio virus can be passed on from person to person, through contaminated food and water, especially among children who play in the dirt and do not wash their hands before eating. While we have rejected Dengvaxia, dengue can be kept in check if the breeding places for mosquitoes are sought out and destroyed. There is much to be done to stem the public health crisis. Everyone has a part to play.

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Why the Kaliwa Dam ECC must be revoked

AS I have written in this column before, I believe that the Kaliwa River Dam should not be built. Like the Chico River irrigation project, this is development aggression at its worst. I said these projects are bad for nature and for our people, and will result in social conflict. They will damn our environment and peoples. They are also economically disadvantageous as Chinese-funded projects. In that column last May, I wrote how the Dumagat, the indigenous people who live in the area, will largely be affected by the construction of the Kaliwa Dam. I pointed out how a part of the area where the Kaliwa Dam will be erected is considered sacred land and is a burial ground for the departed Dumagat. This has caused the Dumagat to double efforts in ensuring that the construction does not take place. Even church leaders, particularly the Catholic Church, are staunch advocates of the movement against the construction of the Kaliwa Dam. Environmentalists have also expressed their opposition to the building of the dam, which will straddle the Rizal and Quezon province. This will have an enormous impact on the Sierra Madre—not just home to a wide array of indigenous groups, but also of rich biodiversity. Even the already critically endangered Philippine Eagle in the area might be facing extinction because of the alterations in the landscape that creating a dam would entail. In sum, the Kaliwa Dam project is controversial, not just because of the exorbitant amount needed for its construction, but also because of its negative environmental and socio-cultural consequences. Unfortunately and inexplicably, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has issued an Environ-

mental Compliance Certificate that will allow for the construction and operation of the dam. As my colleague Joy Reyes and I wrote in another article, the issuance of the Kaliwa Dam ECC is a travesty; it is illegal and immoral. The DENR should revoke the ECC. The ECC, which was issued in haste and did not comprehensively answer the most important procedural and substantial concerns on the FPIC process and the environmental effects, should not have been granted at all.

The government will never obtain that free, prior and informed consent. Joy and I pointed out what the Supreme Court has provided as guidance to the government on how environmental impact assessment (EIA) is to be conducted. In Boracay Foundation, Inc. vs. The Province of Aklan, decided in 2012, the Supreme Court clarified the basic ECC requirements and laid the responsibility of implementing the EIA process on the DENR which must strictly comply with its procedureas. Quoting the Local Government Code, the Court said that there should have been prior consultations before the project’s implementation. It also said that the conduct of a public hearing is mandatory and should be done early on so that concerns of stakeholders are taken into consideration in the EIA study. This lack of prior public consultation is not corrected by subsequent resolutions and endorsements by the LGU. Sadly, the DENR completely disregarded these requirements in issuing the ECC for the Kaliwa Dam. Among others, the ECC was issued without the Free, Prior, and Informed Turn to A5

Build the dam now DAMN the torpedoes, go full speed ahead. That’s our unsolicited advice to the Duterte administration as it seriously considers the construction of the long-delayed Kaliwa Dam project to respond to the water supply crisis in Metro Manila. The two water concessionaires in the city have resorted to rationing of scarce supply to some 1.4 million city residents because of the dwindling supply in Angat Dam, our main water source. That, in turn, is the result of not enough rains this year. We usually have 20 or more typhoons barreling in from the Pacific Ocean every year, but the El Niño weather phenomenon and climate change/global warming seem to have influenced a different weather pattern this year. It is in this context that we must situate President Rodrigo Duterte’s recent warning that he would use his “extraordinary powers” to implement the China-funded Kaliwa Dam project in Tanay, Rizal province, to solve the water crisis in Metro Manila. The President stressed that his primary concern was the people’s welfare: “You have every right to protest if it

The interests of the many should prevail over the interests of the few. would really put (your welfare) in jeopardy. But if the safeguards are there, and between your concerns and the crisis that we are trying to avoid, I will use the extraordinary powers of the presidency to (ensure that people would have water).” He pointed out that his concern was the “greatest good for the greatest number...that is democracy,” and that what is important is for safeguards to be put in place while building the dam. The interests of the many should prevail over the interests of the few. That is a key principle of our democratic system.

But that does not mean imposing the will of the majority on the minority without any democratic discussion or consultation. Here, the indigenous peoples who stand to be adversely affected by the dam project should be given the opportunity to ventilate their views on the dam issue. While we recognize that the President can invoke extraordinary powers to cope with the water crisis, the government should also protect the rights of indigenous peoples. The Commission on Human Rights is correct in pointing out that the water shortage remedy should not violate IP rights: “While we recognize that there is a legitimate concern on water security in Metro Manila, this should not come at the expense of human rights of affected indigenous communities and their land’s biodiversity.” While we’re at this, it seems that critics of the dam project are barking up the wrong tree when they single out the two concessionaires—Maynilad Water Services Inc. (MWSI) and Manila Water Co. (MWC)—for failing to build a new water source to prevent recurring shortfalls. The job of the water concessionaires is Turn to A5

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher ManilaStandard

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Opinion

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

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Two months left for 2019 GDP catch-up

Junking PECO is right for Iloilo City Ilonggos’ complaints, the Yellow oligarch-owned PECO mounted a vigorous legal and propaganda campaign to stop the takeover of its 95-year utility business by Razon’s company, More Electric and Power Corp. (MEPC). Resisting its demise, PECO even filed a new application for a DU license as it insisted it was “never denied, just never given a chance,” to get back its congressional franchise, whining about Razon’s proven strong political network.

ILOILO City Mayor Jerry Treñas finally must have come to his senses after at least nine incidents of fire within three days last month hit the dilapidated and obsolete wooden electricity poles in the “City of Love.” Treñas has asked Malacañang to act decisively to solve the threat to public safety by “inadequately-maintained lines, power outages and hazardous electric posts” owned by the franchise-denied Panay Electric Co. (PECO). Former Iloilo City congressman-turned mayor Treñas had been “playing neutral” towards PECO which had monopolized the distribution of electricity in Iloilo City for 95 years until Congress started hearings on which company should be given the congressional franchise as distribution utility. PECO’s franchise was set to expire last Jan. 19. But when it became clear that congressmen and senators were leaning toward granting the distribution utility franchise to a company owned by tycoon Enrique Razon Jr., then Rep. Treñas voted against giving the franchise for Razon’s company, warning against a potential disruption in Iloilo City’s power supply if a new player is allowed to take over the operation. Still, the experienced legislator Treñas acquiesced to the will of the majority as he was busy then reclaiming the mayoralty post which he and his father had held as certified Cory Aquino loyalists since 1986. Barely a year back in City Hall, Treñas now finds it disturbing that despite failing to secure a new franchise and

Public interest should be paramount in this case. Amid PECO’s desperate efforts to gasp for a final breath of life with numerous legal cases all the way up to the Supreme Court, Treñas apparently could no longer ignore his constituents’ complaints. He asked the Office of the President to direct the ERC to do something about PECO’s failure to solve the problems with its primitive transmission lines and wooden electricity poles, which is susceptible to fire as electricity lines get cut easily by strong winds and rusting transformers blow up easily as well. In a missive to the Presidential Action Center, Treñas listed nine incidents of fire that struck PECO’s electricity poles from Oct. 19 to 21 alone, according to the Bureau of Fire Protection’s report to City Hall. We agree that public interest should be paramount in this case. Aside from his office’s vigorous efforts to prod PECO to act decisively to fix the electricity pole fires, Treñas said he was obliged to take the necessary

steps to address the needs of the people considering that their grievance against PECO has direct impact not only on their properties but on the lives of all residents of Iloilo City. “While the attention of PECO had been repeatedly called (by the Office of the City Mayor) to address the (complaints), the city is still plagued by the same problems,” Treñas said in his complaint to Malacañang. Treñas made sense when he said that as the agency mandated under Republic Act No. 9136 or the Electricity Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) to handle consumer complaints to ensure promotion of consumer interests, the Energy Regulatory Commission has the disciplinary powers to address the numerous consumer complaints against PECO. The mayor’s sarcastic admission that PECO indeed is a fountain of consumer hatred of the cold-hearted and profit-oriented Yellow oligarch-owned businesses involved in providing public services is a welcome development, as President Duterte continues his efforts to streamline the economy and boost modern industrial standards that failed to take root under Yellow leadership in the past three decades since EDSA. The Philippine economy is starting to make an impact on Asian regional growth with the administration’s Build, Build, Build Program, filling up the infrastructure gap that had slowed our economy’s progress due to Yellow oligarchs’ maneuvering to prevent competition from ever gaining a foothold. This was done through the restrictive investment rules put in the 1987 Constitution by Cory’s appointed constitutional commissioners. PECO’s failure to upgrade and modernize its power distribution system is a glaring example of how the old rich have maintained their tight grip on our economy down to the grassroots—much to the detriment of the public.

Put up or shut up AFTER years of being pestered by the opposition over his war against drugs, President Duterte’s patience finally ran out when he invited the opposition’s leading lady, Vice President Leni, to join his Cabinet and run the drug war herself. It would be a homecoming of sorts for Leni, who earlier served on Duterte’s Cabinet as his housing czar when he first took office. She had to step down, though, after trying to have her cake and eat it, too by leading rallies against him while enjoying the perks of Cabinet office. It’s safe to say that she’ll be expected to show the same circumspection if she rejoins his official family, which would hobble any ambitions she might have of leading a revival of the nearly moribund opposition. We’re rooting for her to take up Duterte’s offer so she can finally put to the acid test all those theories she has about running a “right proper” war on drugs. Belonging as she does to a political party whose years in power, under PNoy, saw a threefold increase in drug offenses and other crimes, she should have the advantage of knowing how to undo what her confreres did earlier. On the other hand, if she turns him down, she should really just put up and shut up and let Duterte’s people do their rough but necessary work. The latest SWS survey for this quarter shows no change in the number of addicts that people are seeing on the streets. Results are results, no matter what, and if Duterte’s been complaining about the lack of progress in his war, it’s not because he’s been remiss. It’s really because he may have set his own performance standards too high against the intractability of the enemy. *** Duterte’s penchant for going overboard when making promises to his people was also on display last week when he promised to use his “extraordinary powers” in order to push the Kaliwa Dam project, over the vociferous objections of some 5,000 local tribesmen who believe that their desire to stay put is somehow more important than access to drinking water by millions of Metro Manila residents as well as irrigation by farmers in

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Consent (FPIC) of indigenous peoples as required by law. FPIC can only be certified after the conduct of two community assemblies and a consensus-building period where the indigenous peoples affected can have the ability, employing their own traditional consensus-building processes, to “further understand and discern the merits/advantages and demerits/

the surrounding provinces. Duterte has certainly not been forgiving with the private water concessionaires over the recurrent shortages plaguing the megalopolis. And these businessmen also deserve their share of the blame: by squirreling away billions of pesos in profits, by failing to carry out their sewerage construction mandates, by frequent lapses in operations planning that a suspicious public is increasingly ready to blame on their malfeasance rather than just mismanagement.

Robredo should take up the President’s offer. Having said that, Duterte realizes that the existential problem is where to get more water, not how to distribute it. This is where government alone has to suffer the blame. There are several viable wholesale water projects already in the pipeline: Laiban, Kaliwa, Kanan, Wawa, as well as various attempts to make Laguna de Bay water potable. Whether these end up being done by government alone or by variants of PPP, the President’s extraordinary powers will be essential to lubricating that pipeline. On the power front, Energy Secretary Cusi has finally received the formal recommendations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for developing the nuclear power sector in the country. He’s promised to draft an action plan in response that will be proposed to the President for consideration. Duterte is reportedly open to the idea. SWS surveys show that most Filipinos are ready to follow his lead on the issue. And within Congress, there are already bills pending to support nuclear energy development. Will we yield to the eco-alarmists, the Luddites, the Marcos-haters on this issue? Or will we finally start using common sense in thinking about what is arguably the greenest power source around? *** Abroad, the news is somewhat more dramatic, starting with the US Federal Reserve’s decision to cut its benchmark Fed funds rate for a third time this year, down to a range of 1.5 percent to 1.75 disadvantages of the proposal in order to intelligently arrive at a consensus.” Joy and I pointed out how during consultations with the indigenous communities, concerns have been raised regarding the lack of such compliance with the law in many of the areas which will be affected by the construction of the dam. It is thus interesting to note that the MWSS issued an affidavit of no complaint, which is required for the grant of the ECC, when there were in fact many complaints lodged against the project.

percent. Lower US rates tend to weaken the dollar against other currencies, like the peso, while encouraging or at least sustaining the growth that our country has to be able to rely upon within its oldest trading and investment partner. The Fed chairman, Jerome Powell, promised no more cuts this year, relying mainly on a steady pace of new hiring by the economy that will boost employment, spending, and consumer confidence. But more pessimistic economists remain worried about the downside from the continuing US-China trade war and the delay of an orderly UK “Brexit,” which could dampen US growth and roil international markets, respectively. More apocalyptically, the World Health Organization has issued a gloomy forecast that the outbreak of African Swine Fever may end up killing a quarter of the world’s pig population. It’s a disease that’s not dangerous to humans—not yet, anyway—but 100 percent fatal to pigs. Our country has long prided itself on its disease-free swine population, which enabled us to carve out profitable export market niches among finicky Western buyers. If we’re able to continue to insulate our local industry through strict sanitary standards on imports, we might yet be able to turn a worldwide calamity into an opportunity for ourselves. *** In today’s Gospel (Luke 14: 15-24), Jesus tells the parable of the great feast, to which many people had been invited but no one accepted. The host therefore ordered his servants to bring in common people from the streets—“the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame”—to be his guests at the banquet he had prepared. If the Jewish holy men would reject Jesus, then He would open His message and His kingdom to the Gentiles, the disabled, those deemed unworthy. If we accept His invitation, we are expected to partake in His banquet by attending to our duties as Christians, using wisely the gifts God has given us. Paul enumerates those gifts in the first reading (Romans 12: 5-16), but they can all be summed up: “Let love be sincere; love one another with mutual affection; anticipate one another in showing honor.” We are all Jesus’ guests, and we do our Host the proper honor by showing honor first to each other at His table.

sociated with the election-time award of government infrastructure contracts. But I am unable to accept the explanation for the linkage between the delay in the 2019 General Appropriations Act’s approval and the loss of GDP during the period between January 1 and April 27, WITH the arrival of November, there the day when President Duterte put an are only two months left in 2019. The end to the delay. I do not claim to know administration of President Rodrigo everything there is to know about govDuterte is now under severe pressure to ernment budgeting; what I do know, and deliver catch-up GDP (gross domestic everyone else knows, is that the governproduct) growth sufficient to compensate ment had reenacted-budget funds at its for the growth loss occasioned by the disposal during the delay period. Realizdelay in the approval of the 2019 national ing that there were problems—the Congressional delay budget (General and the then-loomAppropriations ing election ban, Ac t) a n d t h e the economic electionThere’s not enough time. managers should period ban on have engaged in inf rastr uct ure what I choose to spending. During the first three quarters of 2019, the call creative budgeting. Knowing that Philippines grew by less than 6 percent, only P75 billion—the amount of suspectlower than the 6-to-7 percent growth target ed House of Representatives pork barrel set by NEDA (National Economic and insertions—was holding up President Duterte’s approval of the P3.67 trillion Development Authority). Given the economy’s performance up 2019 national budget for 2019—the ecoto September 30 and the absorptive-ca- nomic managers could have front-loadpacity challenges being encountered by ed much infrastructure spending to the the Duterte administration’s BBB (Build, first months of the year instead of merely Build, Build) program, the nation’s eco- waiting for the presidential approval to nomic managers have been talking lately happen. I’m a firm believer in the stateof “at least 6 percent” GDP growth in 2019. ment that there are many ways—legal The downscaling by the Duterte ad- ways—of skinning a cat; the economic ministration of its expectations of 2019 managers apparently are not. What has happened, instead, has been GDP growth parallels the successive reductions in the international financial in- a bunching up, in catch-up fashion, of stitutions’ projections of 2019 Philippine BBB spending, during the months foleconomic growth. In the latest adjust- lowing April. Catch-up spending usualment in its projection of 2019 Philippine ly is neither conducive to efficient use of economic growth, the IMF (Internation- capital nor unattended by absorptive-caal Monetary Fund) sees the Philippine pacity problems. And so I go back to the question I imeconomy growing at 5.5 percent. The counterpart projections of the World pliedly posed at the beginning of this Bank and the ADB (Asian Development column. Is the government likely to be Bank) have, likewise, lately been moving able, during the next two months, to do catch-up spending sufficient to generate in the same direction. The ban on government infrastruc- 2019 GDP growth of “at least 6 percent”? ture spending within the 90-day peri- Considering that as of September 30, od preceding an election clearly was a fully 96 percent of the full-year national negative factor for GDP growth. Ninety budget has been released—as per a redays’ worth of infrastructure spending is cent DBM (Department of Budget and a lot of money spent—or not spent—on Management) report—there would seem goods and services for production and to be a slim chance of a vigorous growth consumption. One is tempted to propose spurt during the next two months. Two months is insufficient time for the scrapping of the ban until one is reminded of the corruption historically as- such a spurt.

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to mainly to distribute water to consumers. It is the government, through the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System that should find alternative water sources, such as the Kaliwa DamNew Centennial Water Source project. Maynilad has said it fully supports the construction of Kaliwa Dam as a “viable long-term solution” to the recurring shortage in Metro Manila. The project is expected to commence soon as this it has already secured an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. “As a water distributor, Maynilad can only distribute the water volume that it receives from existing raw water sources. The government has claimed responsibility for the development of raw water sources, but we have been working with them to expedite the process because we understand the urgency of meeting the supply needs of our customers,” it said recently. The two water concessionaires have also been raked over the coals for their supposed failure to install sewerage systems and wastewater treatment facilities. There’s also the allegation that the fees Maynilad and MWC have been charging their customers to build these facilities were not being spent for the

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Readers can write me at gbolivar1952@yahoo.com.

What is happening in Mindanao? Villagers are supposedly already begging for relief because help from the government has not reached them. This highlights the need for the Department of Disaster Resilience. Tingog Rep. Yedda Romualdez already renewed her move to have the DDR bill enacted. Let’s hope her colleagues will listen.

The government will never obtain that FPIC. The construction of the dam and its subsequent operation will require the relocation of the indigenous communities whose livelihoods will be affected. Many of the indigenous peoples are farmers and serve as guides for hikers who climb the surrounding Sierra Madre mountains. Resettling them will result to a loss of their livelihoods and their separation from their sacred sites and burial grounds. In addition to the lack of FPIC, the Kaliwa River Dam will cause serious

damage to the environment which is a “protected” area according to the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Law. Submerging a huge portion of the Kaliwa watershed is not acceptable as the consequences of that are unimaginable. What makes the issuance of the ECC even more unacceptable is that the EIA process, if properly done, would have shown that there are other alternatives that can address the Manila water crisis. These other options are not as destructive to the environment, such as the pro-

purpose. Maynilad clarifies that it has spent P46.7 billion on wastewater treatment facilities since 1997 even if it has collected only P38.07 billion in sewage fees over same period, which means it still has to recover P8.6 billion of its investments in wastewater projects. The concessionaire is also allocating P200 billion to build 26 new STPs and install 425 kilometers of new sewer lines from 2019 to 2037. These investments, it said, are in fulfillment of its responsibilities under Republic Act (RA) No. 9275 or the Clean Water Act (CWA). The two water concessionaires insist that they should not be singled out for the lack of enough sewage treatment plants and wastewater treatment facilities as mandated under the CWA because there are 17 government agencies, including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Department of Public Works and Highways that have failed to do their jobs as mandated by the Clean Water Act. The current water crisis in Metro Manila needs an immediate solution, and it’s not by inundating the water distributors with what they feel are totally unfounded and baseless accusations. Perhaps the government should start rolling up its sleeves and picking up shovels so that the dam project can finally get off the ground. ernhil@yahoo.com Victims are not supposed to be begging, Santa Banana! Yes, we have the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council but I believe that a real department is necessary. It has its local counterparts, but all these are only ad hoc bodies. In contrast, the DDR will be a permanent body. It guarantees a science-based approach and a focus on disasters. The DDR would also provide leadership in the continuous development of strategies and systematic approaches to disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness. Pass the law establishing the DDR now! posal by a Japanese firm to construct a weir, which is a 7-meter high wall as compared to China’s 60-meter high dam, for a much lower cost. The Kaliwa Dam violates the Filipino people’s right to a sound environment and disregards the rights of affected indigenous peoples and local communities. The DENR clearly abdicated its duty under the law when it issued the ECC. Revocation is the only option. Facebook Page: Professor Tony La Viña Twitter: tonylavs

News

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

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Squatters pollute Manila Bay—DILG MMDA collects 47 tons-plus of garbage after ‘Undas’ By Joel E. Zurbano THE Metro Manila Development Authority collected more than 47 tons of trash left by visitors in various cemeteries in the National Capital Region during the observance of All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day. This despite the appeal of Church leaders and various environmental groups to the people to avoid dumping and abandon waste inside and near cemeteries during the solemn occasion annually observed on Nov. 1 and 2. MMDA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Pircelyn Pialago said the agency’s Environmental Management Unit collected a total of 167.84 cubic meter (14 truckloads) of garbage from 27 cemeteries in 16 cities and one municipality in Metro Manila from Oct. 28 to Nov. 3. Pialago said the trash collected this year was lower than the 57 tons of garbage the MMDA collected in 2018. “The number is lesser compared to Undas last year when 202.61 cubic meter or 17 truckloads of garbage were collected,” she added. Pialago said the major cemeteries under the MMDA’s watch include the Manila North in the City of Manila, Manila South in Makati City, Loyola Memorial Park in Marikina City, Bagbag Public Cemetery in Quezon City, and Manila Memorial Park in Paranaque City. Environmentalist group Ecowaste Coalition lamented the throw-away culture that again typified the annual observance of Undas. Based on the group’s monitoring, ‘minimal to intense’ littering was observed in 17 cemeteries in various cities in Metro Manila.

BI agents nab Chinese fugitive in Makati City By Vito Barcelo

By Maricel V. Cruz

SENIOR official of the Department of the Interior and Local Government on Monday blamed squatters for the degradation of Manila Bay.

“We have discovered that 80 percent of the pollution in Manila Bay comes from informal-settler families,” Undersecretary Epimaco Densing of the DILG informed lawmakers from the House of Representatives. Densing made the statement at the hearing conducted by the House of Representatives’ Committee Natural Resources, chaired by Dasmariñas City Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr. on the status of Manila Bay rehabilitation that is be-

ing undertaken by several government agencies headed by the Environment and Tourism departments. Barzaga earlier filed House Resolution 247 directing the natural resources panel to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on the status of Manila Bay rehabilitation and the cleanup of water tributaries leading to it, as ordered by President Rodrigo Duterte and by the continuing writ of mandamus of the Supreme Court. A writ of mandamus is an order from a

The incident prompted the MRT management to implement a provisional train service between Shaw Boulevard Station in Mandaluyong City to Taft Avenue in Pasay City. Eight months ago, an MRT 3 train also unloaded all its passengers between the Cubao and Santolan stations after smoke was noticed underneath it. In an earlier Monday morning advisory, management said the MRT 3 served 140,046 passengers and recorded an average of 12 running trains at peak hours, with one of the newer Dalian trains running. Meanwhile, the MRT 3 is offering free rides to passengers 18 years old and younger on Wednesday in connection with the 27th National Chil-

Public warned vs. fake visa services in Korea THE Department of Foreign Affairs has warned the public against fake visa processing services offered to irregular migrants claiming to allow them to work and stay legally in South Korea. In an advisory issued on Monday, the DFA said these services usually advertised on Facebook claiming to provide assistance to Filipinos who would like to have a valid visa, enabling them to work and stay in Korea legally. These services should be provided for “free” or for a “small” attorney’s fee, the DFA said “Please note that there is no such service allowed by Korean authorities,” the DFA advisory said. According to the advisory, the Korea Immigration Service does not process the visa applications of irregular and undocumented migrants based in Korea. Rey E. Requejo

Probe on substandard steel products up

BUILDUP. Traffic builds up along South Luzon Expressway in Alabang, Muntinlupa due to influx of motorists heading to Manila after spending All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day in their respective provinces. Norman Cruz

Leni can’t solve PH’s drug crisis—PDEA chief By Rio N. Araja PHILIPPINE Drug Enforcement Agency director general Aaron Aquino on Monday took a swipe at Vice President Leni Robredo, saying he believes she would not succeed to solve the illegal drug trade should she accept the offer of President Rodrigo Duterte to lead the war on drugs. In an interview at the CNN Philip-

pines’ “The Source,” Aquino said “if you ask me, she will fail.” He said the vice president lacks the experience to wipe out the illegal drug activity. “She knows nothing about illegal drugs,” he added. Aquino was appointed as PDEA chief in Sept. 2017, after spending more than three decades with the Philippine Na-

BUREAU of Immigration operatives arrested a Chinese fugitive wanted who is wanted in his homeland for economic crimes. Chen Long, also known under the alias Chen Chenglong, was cornered in a building in Makati City by operatives of the BI’s Fugitive Search Unit. BI-FSU chief Bobby Raquepo said they received information about Chen’s crime from Chinese authorities, saying “upon receipt of the information, we immediately conducted a case build up and determined his location to effect his arrest.” Documents showed that Chen, together with a cohort, set up an unregistered investment company in Shandong province and reportedly duped their victims more than 60 million RMB, or more than P400 million. It was also found out that Chen’s passport has been canceled by the Chinese government, making him an undocumented alien. Meanwhile, BI Commissioner Jaime Morente commended the efforts of the FSU in apprehending foreign fugitives in the country.

MRT 3... From A1

court to a government agency or agencies to do something, in this case, to cleanup Manila Bay. The continuous pollution of Manila Bay had impacted the health and livelihood of the coastal communities and produced deleterious effects on the marine life and resources in Manila Bay and contingent waters and tributaries leading to the said bay,” Barzaga noted in his resolution. During the Monday hearing, representatives from the Health department and Bureau of Fisheries affirmed the Manila Bay Rehabilitation Task Force where Densing is a member that massive garbage, fecal and waste sewage have worsened the pollution.

IN BRIEF

tional Police. “I have been in the PNP for 36 years. I have been in PDEA for over two years. It is only now that I became the director general that I have known what the real problem is about illegal drugs,” the PDEA chief said. “The Vice President does not have that [knowledge]. She does not know anything about illegal drugs,” he added.

SIN TAX ADVOCATES. Health advocates from the sin tax coalition once again staged a rally in front of the Senate building to urge senators to immediately approve the proposal to increase taxes on alcoholic beverages, heated tobacco and vapes (e-cigar). Ey Acasio

dren’s Month. In an advisory posted on Facebook, the management said the offer is available from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Students will have to present their school identification cards to get free train rides. Last month, the MRT management said it was planning to expand passenger capacity by upgrading its system and putting additional train units. MRT 3 director for operations engineer Michael Capati said management is optimistic to increase the running trains to 20 from the present 15 in less than two years. The trains’ travel speed, Capati said, will also be increased from 30 kilometers to 60 kilometers an hour. When these improvements take place, the headway or waiting time on the platform will be shortened from 7.5 minutes to 3.5 minutes, he added.

Pork or parked?... From A1 [House of Representatives] transmitted to us their version, it became P19 billion, which we deleted. The problem then was the bulk in the major portion of the P19 billion that were realigned.” But Malacañang on Monday challenged Lacson to identify the alleged P20 billion worth of questionable projects that he claimed were “parked” in the proposed 2020 budget. President Rodrigo Duterte would “remove” such appropriations, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said and urged Lacson to mark the questionable items he alleged. “Tell Senator Lacson to point out what specific item in the GAA [General Appropriations Act] the P20-billion pork barrel he is referring to and the President will remove it,” Panelo told reporters in a

text message. Meanwhile, the leaders of the House of Representatives on Monday thanked Lacson for his “objective assessment” of the 2020 General Appropriations Bill that was passed swiftly last month by the chamber under the leadership of Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano. Cayetano maintained that the Houseapproved 2020 budget was “pork-free.” House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez and Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr. on Monday also commended Lacson for acknowledging the hard work of the House in ensuring a pork-free national budget for next year. “[Senator Lacson’s] proposal for the Senate to adopt the national budget that we approved is a step in the right direction. This bolsters our position that what we approved and transmitted to the Senate is a constitutionally compliant General Appropriations Bill,” Romualdez said. With MJ Blancaflor and Maricel V. Cruz

LAWMAKERS on Monday demanded a congressional inquiry into the alleged smuggling and proliferation of substandard steel products in the Philippines that could have compromised the structural soundness of some infrastructure in the country in the last 10 to 12 years. Reps. Isidro Ungab of Davao City, Robert Ace Barbers of Surigao del Norte, Precious Hipolito Castelo of Quezon City, and Eric Go Yap of ACT-CIS party-list group made the urging following deaths and destruction caused by the series of earthquakes that hit Mindanao last week. Agusan del Norte Rep. Lawrence Lemuel Fortun filed House Resolution (HR) 379 urging the House of Representatives’ Trade and Industry to conduct a congressional probe on the alleged substandard steel products that have proliferated in the market. “This seeming grand deception may have led to the rise in the past 10 to 12 years of structurally-compromised infrastructures that may not be able to withstand high intensity quakes, thus endangering the lives of millions of Filipinos,” Fortun said. Fortun said Congress wants Congress to look into the alleged collusion between large steelmakers and officials of the Department of Trade and Industry and the Bureau of Customs behind smuggling of substandard steel products. Maricel V. Cruz

Gov’t resumes fuel marking ops THE government has resumed its fuel marking operation in line with the new program aimed to curb oil smuggling in the country. This time, the marking activity involves 11.6 million liters of Mogas Base Fuel onboard MT Sichem Mumbai at the import terminal facility of Unioil Petroleum in Mariveles, Bataan last Sunday. The dosing of the petroleum products was done by adding the official marker inside storage tanks where the petroleum products stored. The procedure, according to Customs deputy commissioner for enforcement Teddy Raval, follows the commencement of marking activities on petroleum products of Insular Oil Corp. in Subic last week. To date, a total of 94.9 million liters of fuel have already been marked at Unioil since its initial marking on Oct. 22. “This is equivalent to collected duties and taxes amounting to P719 million,” said Raval, the chief implementing officer of the Fuel Marking Program. Raval said that oil firms who have yet to have their fuel marked are highly encouraged to work with concerned agencies to avoid unwanted prosecution. By Feb. 3, 2020, nationwide testing of fuel in the retail side as well as enforcement actions will commence. “Gasoline, diesel and kerosene found to be unmarked will be seized, and penalties will be imposed against those storing, transporting, importing or peddling unmarked fuel,” said Raval. With only three months away from the nationwide testing, the bureaus of Customs, and Internal Revenue, the Department of Finance in coordination with the Switzerland-based SICPA and SGS Philippines continuous to work closely with oil companies hastening the marking of petroleum products before the deadline. The government advised retailers to only buy and sell marked fuel “to avoid violation and possible penalties including criminal prosecution.” The Customs bureau under the administration of Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero is also working closely with oil companies in the country to fast-track the marking of petroleum products before they are sold to the market. Three oil firms—Seaoil Philippines Inc., Unioil Petroleum and Insular Oil Co.—have so far complied with the new policy. Joel E. Zurbano

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK Manila

Standard

Sports

TODAY

Globe’s Liyab wins League of Legends SEA Tour meet L IYAB, the professional esports team of Globe in partnership with Mineski, routed Steelwolves GAIA, 3-0 to emerge as the grand champion of the League of Legends Southeast Asian Tour Invitational at Conquerors Manila 2019 held last Sunday at the World Trade Center recently.

The team, composed of Lee “Ggamza” Joo Young, Edrian Frances “Doedoii” Brancia, Eric “Exosen” Gubatan, Bae “Gari” Yong-Jun and James “Hamez” Santos, bucked a slow start in the first game but came up big once they got things going to rout their opponents in the all-Filipino best of five finals before an enthu-

siastic crowd. Aside from bragging rights and a trophy, Liyab took home a whopping P1M cash prize out of the total P2.7M cash pot, making it the biggest win so far for the Liyab LoL squad. “We are so proud of them and very happy about the win. The team performed extremely well but more im-

portantly, their impressive victory is a testament to how successful our program is with Liyab Esports. By balancing both the mental and physical preparations of our athletes, we can expect to see them rise above extreme pressure and compete well before their fans and supporters,” Gerry Soler, Head of Globe Games and Esports, said. Prior to reaching the ﬁnals, Liyab LoL likewise had an impressive run in the elimination rounds, taking down Thailand’s Sea Serpents, with a quick 2-0 victory.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Jeson rips Anasta for PPS title

JESON Patrombon snatched victory wan Express Pera Padala circuit that from the clutches of defeat, bucking an also drew some of the country’s leadopening set defeat and fighting back from ing and rising junior players. “Patrombon’s character and resilien1-4 down in the second to hack out a 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 decision over Vicente Anasta cy should inspire our young players as and claim the PPS-PEPP Pintaflores Fes- they face bigger, tougher challenges in tival men’s singles Open crown in San pursuit of their dreams,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro Carlos, Negros Occidental recently. Staring at defeat as Anasta sustained of the country’s top player who dominathis superb all-around game to move ed the Gov. Umali Cup, Fr. Suarez Cup, two games away from posting a rever- Brookside Open and Actifit Open early sal, Patrombon put up one big shot after this year. Patrombon and Anasta later teamed the other to break his doubles partner in the sixth game of the second frame then up to thwart Fritz Verdad and Joshua swept the next four in varying fashions Kinaadman, 7-6(4), 6-4, and secure the to force a decider at the San Carlos City doubles diadem in the annual event held as part of the host city’s Pintaflores Festennis courts. Seizing the momentum, Patrombon tival celebrations and organized by Cristhen broke Anasta again in the fourth ton Carmona. and eight games of the third set to Extra-judicial pound the victory and extend his For Settlement of Estate domination of the Open tournaments with Waiver of Rights fast ad under the Palawan Pawnshop-Pala- Notice is hereby given

Republic of the Phillippines Department of Health National Capital Regional Office VALENZUELA MEDICAL CENTER

Padrigal St., Karuhatan, ValenzuelaCity Tel. No. 294-6711 to 16, Telefax 291-4259 Email address: valgen_hosp@yahoo.com InvItatIon to BId Procurement of commonly-used medIcal suPPlIes cy 2020 PuBlIc BIddIng no. vmc – 2020 - 009

Members of Team Liyab, the professional esports team of Globe in partnership with Mineski, accept the check worth P1-M for winning the League of Legends SEA Tour Invitational Championship at the recently concluded Globe Conquerors Manila 2019 at World Trade Center in Pasay City.

PH fencers, Lions grace PSA Forum THE Philippine fencing team to the 30th Southeast Asian Games and undefeated reigning National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball champion San Beda University make up for another interesting discussion in the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum on Tuesday at the Amelie Hotel-Manila. Team manager Jude Roque will represent the Red Lions in the weekly session presented by San Miguel Corp., Braska Restaurant, Amelie Hotel, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. to talk about the coming NCAA championship series as they

await their ﬁnals opponent. Meanwhile, the national fencing team will have coach Rolando Canlas and fencers Samantha Catantan, Nathaniel Perez, Christian Jhester Concepcion, Nicole Allaine Cortey, and Noelito Jose Jr. gracing the 10 a.m. forum to tackle their campaign in the biennial meet the country is hosting for the fourth time. The session will be livestreamed via the PSA Facebook page fb.com/PhilippineSportswritersAssociation and aired on a delayed basis over Radyo Pilipinas 2 from 1 to 2 p.m. and later at 6:30 p.m.

ers get a higher chance of being recruited by top U.S. College coaches who use the rating for their rosters. Three top collegiate coaches—Alex Wong from Brown University, Rob Raines from Cornell University in New York and Jessie Frieder from Boston University—will run the camp. They will evaluate each player carefully, with advice and guidance for improvement in speciﬁc areas of their game while assessing their readiness to move on to the next level on their journey to possible career as a tennis professional or as a top collegiate tennis player. Why the need to go through the US collegiate system to excel in tennis? “Because US universities are the gateway to international competition and recognition. The schools are equipped with the newest technology and uphold the highest game standards. Coaches there work extremely hard, not just on individual ﬁtness and skill levels, but also on the athlete’s mental, psychological and competitive outlook to give them the best opportunity to maximize their talents and reach new heights,” said Akshay Maliwal, Founder and CEO of DreamBig.

(MS-OCT. 29, NOV. 5, 12, 2019)

The Valenzuela Medical Center (VMC), through the General Appropriations Act/Income CY 2020, intends to apply the sum of Philippine Currency: TEN MILLION ONE HUNDRED NINETY FOUR THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED ELEVEN PESOS ONLY, (PhP 10,194,311.00) being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments for the Procurement of Commonly-used Medical Supplies Cy 2020 under PB No. VMC – 2020 - 009. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

The VMC now invites sealed Bids from eligible Bidders for the procurement of the abovecaptioned package. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II, entitled “Instructions to Bidders”.

FRANCIS MARVIN MALLARI LINGA, Petitioner

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act” and is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or corporations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to Republic Act No. 5183 and subject to Commonwealth Act 138.

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Only Bids from Bidders who passed the eligibility check will be opened. The process for the eligibility check is described in Section II of the Bidding Documents entitled, “ITB”. The Bidder with the Lowest Calculated Bid (LCB) shall advance to the post-qualification stage in order to finally determine the responsiveness of the bid submission to the technical and financial requirements of the project. The contract shall then be awarded to the Lowest Calculated and Responsive Bidder (LCRB) who was determined as such during the post-qualification procedure.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the VMC and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below from 9:00am-11:00am and 2:00pm-4:00pm starting October 31, 2019.

In a verified Petition for Declaration of Nullity of Marriage filed on May 22, 2017, petitioner prays that, after due hearing, his marriage to the respondent which was solemnized on January 26, 2002, be declared NULL AND VOID, AB INITIO, on the ground of psychological incapacity of the respondent to comply with the essential marital obligations.

The VMC will hold a Pre-bid Conference for this bidding activity on November 15, 10:00am at the Valenzuela Medical Center, Padrigal St., Karuhatan, Valenzuela City. Only those who have purchased the bidding documents shall be allowed to participate in the Pre-Bid Conference. Those who have not purchased the bidding documents may act as observers and submit written queries, subject to the guidelines as stated in the IRR of RA 9184.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee in the amount of: ABC to be Bid

500,000 and below More than 500,000 up to 1 Million More than 1 Million up to 5 Million More than 5 Million up to 10 Million More than 10 Million up to 50 Million

Maximum Cost of Bidding Documents (in Philippine Peso) 500.00 1,000.00 5,000.00 10,000.00 25,000.00

It may also be downloaded free of charge from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and an electronic copy from BAC Secretariat’s Office provided that the bidders shall pay the applicable fee for the bidding documents not later than the submission of their bids 8.

Bids and eligibility requirements must be delivered to the address below on or before December 3, 2019, 10:00am, at the VMC BAC Secretariats’ Office.

Bid Opening and Eligibility Check will be on December 3, 2019, 10:00am. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late submission of bids will not be entertained. All bids must be accompanied by a Bid Security in the prescribed form, amount and validity period.

10. The Valenzuela Medical Center reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all Bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders. For further information, please refer to: BAC Secretariats’ Office Valenzuela Medical Center, Annex Building, 2nd Floor, Padrigal St., Valenzuela City Telefax No. 294-4625

ORDER OF SUMMONS BY PUBLICATION

Second Alias Summons was issued on December 6, 2016. The Server’s Return dated January 11, 2019 states that “respondent is currently working overseas and/or in Bahrain and the definite time of her return cannot be assured.” On March 26, 2019, petitioner filed a “Motion for Leave of Court to Serve Summons by Publication.” On April 2, 2019, the court issued an Order granting the issuance of an Order of Summons by Publication. NOW THEREFORE respondent MICHELLE CASTILLO PANA, whose last known address is at 251 Muzon, Alitagtag, Batangas, is hereby summoned and required to file with the Regional Trial Court, Branch 106, Quezon City, National Capital Judicial Region, Bulwagan ng Katarungan, Quezon City, her answer to the petition in the instant case within THIRTY (30) DAYS from the last date of publication of this summons. In the event of failure to do so, this court shall direct the Public Prosecutor to conduct an investigation to determine whether or not collusion exists between the parties in the filing of the instant petition, and if it is determined that there is no such collusion, the petitions shall be allowed to present his evidence in support of the petition. Let this Order, be published once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks in the “The Standard”, a newspaper of national circulation, pursuant to P.D. No. 1079, at the expense of the petitioner. Likewise, let a copy of the summons as well as a copy of the petition be deposited in the Post Office, postage pre-paid and sent by registered mail to the respondent at her last known address also at the expense of the petitioner. Petitioner is enjoined to submit to this court proof of compliance herewith.

(Sgd.) ANGELENE MARY W. QUIMPO-SALE Judge

Republic of the Phillippines Department of Health National Capital Regional Office VALENZUELA MEDICAL CENTER

Cc: Francis Marvin Mallari Linga Michelle Castillo Pana Atty. Don Mikhail A. Siccuan ACP Buenaluz, Jr. OSG

(Mstandard-Oct. 29 & Nov. 5, 2019)

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 230, QUEZON CITY BLESILDA GADITANO, Plaintiff,

Padrigal St., Karuhatan, ValenzuelaCity Tel. No. 294-6711 to 16, Telefax 291-4259 Email address: valgen_hosp@yahoo.com

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InvItatIon to BId Procurement of varIous Pathology and laBoratory suPPlIes cy 2020 PuBlIc BIddIng no. vmc-2020-007 The Valenzuela Medical Center (VMC), through the General Appropriations Act/Income CY 2019, intends to apply the sum of Philippine Currency: FORTY NINE MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED SIXTY TWO THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED NINETEEN PESOS AND 30/100 ONLY, (PhP49,862,219.30)being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments for the Procurement of Various Pathology and Laboratory Supplies CY 2019 under PB No. VMC-2019008. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

Civil Case No. R-QZN-17-05876-CV For: Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Marriage. MICHELLE CASTILLO PANA, Respondent. x--------------------------------------------x

Quezon City, May 24, 2019.

(MS-NOV. 5, 2019)

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 106, QUEZON CITY

SO ORDERED.

(SGD) JOSEPH T. NOCOM, MD, FPOA Chairperson Bids and Awards Committee

CASE NO. R-QZN-19-02417-CV For: Collection of Sum of Money MELINDA LAHOM Defendant. x---------------------------------------x

ORDER

In today’s hearing on the Motion for Leave of Court to Effect Service of Summons by Publication, the representative of Blesilda Gaditano in the person of Elizabeth is present. Likewise, Atty. John Thomas S. Alferos III, counsel for the plaintiff, is present. Finding the motion to be well-taken, the same is herby GRANTED. The plaintiff is hereby given leave to effect the service of the Summons to the defendant Melinda Lahom by publication in a newspaper of general circulation once a week. SO ORDERED. In open court, 13 September 2019. (Sgd.) MARIA GILDA T. LOJA-PANGILINAN Presiding Judge

Copy furnished:

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the VMC and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below from 9:00am-11:00am and 2:00pm-4:00pm starting November 04, 2019.

Blesilda Gaditano Plaintiff 107 Antique St., Bago Bantay Quezon City

The VMC will hold a Pre-Bid Conference for this bidding activity on November 11, 2019, 1:00 pm at the Valenzuela Medical Center, Padrigal St., Karuhatan, Valenzuela City. Only those who have purchased the bidding documents shall be allowed to participate in the Pre-Bid Conference. Those who have not purchased the bidding documents may act as observers and submit written queries, subject to the guidelines as stated in the IRR of RA 9184.

Melinda Lahom Defendant No. 3 Dangay Street Veterans Village, Project 7, Quezon City 102 Road 18 Extension Project 8, Quezon City

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee in the amount of: ABC to be Bid

500,000 and below More than 500,000 up to 1 Million More than 1 Million up to 5 Million More than 5 Million up to 10 Million More than 10 Million up to 50 Million

The event aims to provide young tennis players with play level-based competitions with an opportunity to build up their Universal Tennis Rating.

Advertising Department 832-5547

DreamBig gives PH tennis a boost HERE’S a unique opportunity for junior tennis players to hone their skills and train under top-notch college coaches right here in Manila. DreamBig Events will stage the “Gold Series College Exposure Tennis Camp”, a two-day tennis camp preceded by a twoday UTR tournament, at the Manila Polo Club on Jan. 9 to 12, 2020. The sports events company stages tournaments and camp experiences to junior athletes so they can improve their skills and tournament performances. Touted as the “Road to College Tennis”, the Event will give young athletes in the Philippines the all-important training and opportunity to network with world-class coaches—putting them in a good position to potentially get recruited to top U.S. University/ College tennis teams. The event aims to provide young tennis players with play level-based competitions with an opportunity to build up their Universal Tennis Rating. The UTR is the world’s only results–based rating system in tennis that provides an accurate measurement of a player’s level—from newbie to pro to the world’s top tennis players. Armed with a UTR, tennis play-

results, please call

that the Estate of the deceased ROMEO S. CAPARROS were ExtraJudicially settled among the heirs With Waiver of Rights as per Doc.No. 289; Page No. 59; Book No. 221; Series of 2019, before Notary Public Atty. Nelly B. Molina of Quezon City.

Maximum Cost of Bidding Documents (in Philippine Peso) 500.00 1,000.00 5,000.00 10,000.00 25,000.00

Bids and eligibility requirements must be delivered to the address below on or before November 27, 2019, 10:00am, at the VMC BAC Secretariats’ Office.

Bid Opening and Eligibility Check will be on November 27, 2019, 10:00am. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late submission of bids will not be entertained. All bids must be accompanied by a Bid Security in the prescribed form, amount and validity period.

Atty. John Thomas S. Alferos III ALFEROS ARMAS & ASSOCIATES LAW OFFICE Counsel for the Plaintiff Unit K, No. 1143 San Francisco Del Monte Ave., Barangay Paltok 1105, Quezon City

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION REGIONAL TRIAL COURT BRANCH 230, QUEZON CITY BLESILDA GADITANO, Plaintiff, -versus-

CASE NO. R-QZN-19-02417-CV For: Collection of Sum of Money MELINDA LAHOM Defendant. x---------------------------------------x

SUMMONS

To: MELINDA LAHOM No. 3 Dangay Street Veterans Village, Project 7, Quezon City 102 Road 18 Extension, Project 8, Quezon City GREETINGS: You are required within fifteen (15) days after service of this summons upon you to file with this Court and serve on the plaintiff your answer to the complaint, copy of which is attached, together with the annexes. You are reminded of the provision in the IBPOCA Memorandum on Policy Guidelines dated 12 March 2002, to observe restraint in filing a motion to dismiss and instead allege the grounds thereof as defenses in the answer. If you fail to file answer within the time fixed, the plaintiff will take judgment by default and may be granted the reliefs applied for in the complaint. WITNESS my hand under the seal of the Court, this 13th February 2019.

(SGD) JOSEPH T. NOCOM, MD, FPOA Chairperson Bids and Awards Committee

(Sgd.) ATTY. GENELOU L. SAMPAGA Branch Clerk of Court (MS-NOV. 5, 2019)

(MStandard-Nov. 5, 12 & 19, 2019)

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Reuel Vidal, Assistant Editor sports@manilastandard.net sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

Sports

MERALCO ROUTS GINEBRA.

Meralco’s Baser Amer splits the Ginebra defense in a PBA Governors’ Cup game won by the Bolts, 101-77.

PH lifters eye big team in Tokyo Stepladder T NCAA semis starts today

HE Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas (SWP) is looking to send a big delegation when the country marches to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

By Peter Atencio THE Letran Knights and the San Sebastian College Stags will both be brimming with confidence when they fight it out at the start of the 95th National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball stepladder semifinals today at the Cuneta Astrodome. The Knights will be banking on their field-goal accuracy when they confront the Stags at 4 p.m. “We want to have a good start,” said Knights’ coach Bonnie Tan. The Knights, who are on their second semis appearance in two years, are seeking a better finish after getting beaten by the Lyceum Pirates in last season’s Final Four. Their win-loss record of 12-6 may have fallen short of the 13-5 slate that they had in Season 94. But their performance was still good enough for the Knights to achieve their goals. On the other hand, better teamwork is expected of the San Sebastian Stags, whose 11-7 slate allowed them to bounce back from their fifth-place finish last year. “Ang hirap kasi ng ginawa namin, with Allyn doing everything. I guess, the good thing is, the boys really needed a break and a rest,” said Stags’ coach Egay Macaraya. Macaraya wants to get more contribution from other teammates if they are hurdle the Stags. The Knights draw strength from the big games of Jerrick Balanza, Larry Muyang and Ato Ular. Balanza leads with his averages of 27.6 minutes, 14.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists. Bulanadi is the Stags’ main man. He knocked in 44 points and eight rebounds on his final elimination0round game with the Stags. In the junior division, the no. 1 seeded San Beda Red Cubs will clash with La Salle Greenhills at 10 a.m., while the Lyceum Junior Pirates will face the San Sebastian Staglets. The Red Cubs will go for a finals’ seat under new coach Manu Inigo, who replaced JB Sison.

SWP President Monico Puentevella said they have a deep bench of talents that could help Olympians Hidilyn Diaz and Nestor Colonia in representing the country in the Summer Games set from July 24 to August 9 next year. Leading the charge for the local weightlifters is Vanessa Sarno, a 16-year-old

prodigy who won two gold medals in the Asian Junior and Youth Championships in Pyongyang last week. Sarno overcame the favored North Korean and Uzbek lifters in the finals, giving her a good chance of qualifyqualify ing for the Summer Games this year and emerging with a medal in the Paris Olympics in 2024. Aside from Sarno, the SWP also has Eileen Ann Ando, Kristel Macrohon and Margaret Colonia in its roster. “We want to become the sports association with the largest number of Olympic delegates,” said Puentevella, a former Bacolod lawmaker, chairman of the PhilPhil ippine Olympic Committee and commissioner of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC). “Like Hidilyn when she competed in the Beijing Olympics in 2008, we are also exposing our young players to international competitions as early as 16

years old. We are preparing them early and want them to qualify in the Tokyo Olympics so that by 2024, they already have the experience to become Olympic medalists.” He added that while coming up with an impressive finish in the SEA Games is on top of their priorities, sending a big delegation to the Olympics is also one of their goals since the country has a good chance of winning in weightlifting. “We’re more concerned now with winning in the Olympics than in the SEA Games. Modesty aside, we’re poised to send more athletes to the Olympics aside from Hidilyn and Nestor. We have a lot of young players in the pipeline,” he further noted. “Hidilyn was heaven-sent to Philippine sports. She inspires us all to work harder,” Philippine Sports Commission Chairman William Ramirez said. “We will continue to support her, the weightlifters and all the other athletes as we aspire to send more champions and winners to every podium,” the PSC Chief added. In order to qualify for the Summer

2,000 jins join Inter-School taekwondo tilt AROUND 2,000 athletes are expected to vie for honors in the 2019 SMART/ MVPSports Foundation National Inter-School Taekwondo Championships on November 9-10 at the Ayala Malls, Manila Bay. The competition will feature Novice and Advance male and female performer in the Seniors, Juniors, Cadet and Gradeschool categories. The two-day tournament also includes Poomsae or “forms” which is open to colored and blackbelt students for individual, pair and team events. Poomsae entries follow a systematic time of movement in consecutive sequence against an imaginary lone or multiple opponents. Hands and feet and interconnected techniques like blocking, punching, striking, thrusting and kicking are used in this event. Constant training of Poomsae helps improve flexibility and control in breathing, balance, power, eye focus and mental discipline. Schools affiliated with the Philippine Taekwondo Association nationwide will compete. Among these are Ateneo de Manila University, University of Sto. Tomas, St. Paul Pasig, Diliman Preparatory School, Mary Hill School, Emilio Aguinaldo College, Montessori Integrated School, De La Salle University, University of the East, National University, Philippine Science High School, School of Holy Spirit, University of the Philippines Diliman, National University, Arellano University and other Visayas and Mindanao institutions. Competition in the event supported by PLDT, Meralco, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee and Milo will start at 9 a.m. Martial arts enthusiasts and sports fans, especially children who are interested to learn taekwondo. are invited to witness the tourney.

One of the early entries, Axxel Immer Hilado of St. John’s Institute (left) executes a roundhouse kick against Liam Cabangca of St.Mary’s Academy.

3 PSL teams to test PH volleybelles’ mettle Subic is new the biennial meet for 10 consecutive years upcoming Southeast Asian Games,” said before falling short of a medal in the 2015 Laurel during the general technical meetand 2017 meets in Singapore and Kuala ing and press briefing of this event that has Summit Hotel as official residence and Lumpur, respectively. Laurel said they are leaving no stone Foton as official vehicle in cooperation with Petron, F2 Logistics, Generika-Ayaunturned in preparing the squad. IT’S going to be a war as three teams test “This event was organized primarily la, Cignal, Sta. Lucia, Marinerang Pilipina the mettle of the national women’s vol- to help the national team prepare for the and PLDT Home Fibr. leyball squad in the Philippine Superliga (PSL) Super Cup starting today at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan. Fresh from a 12-day training camp in Japan, the Nationals clash with PSL Shine at 5 p.m. right before the collision between University of Tsukuba and PSL Sparkle in the 7 p.m. featured attraction of this pocket tournament that aims to prepare the Philippine Team for the 30th Southeast Asian Games. A simple opening ceremony set at 3 p.m. with no less than PSL chairman Philip Ella Juico and Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas, Inc. (LVPI) vice president Peter Cayco tipped to deliver inspiring messages to the Nationals. In a press conference yesterday, PSL president Ian Laurel reiterated the league’s all-out support to the national squad that is aiming for a podium finish in the prestigious biennial meet set this December at the Philsports Arena. Shown here are (back row, from left) PH Team coach Shaq Delos Santos; Abby Marano, The last time the national women’s squad Team Captain, PHI Team; Carl Dimaculangan, Head Coach Team Shine; Becca Rivera, Team emerged with a podium finish in the SEA Captain, Team Shine; Miho Yukota and Coach Tasumi Nakanishi of University of Tsukuba Games was when the country had its host- Japan; Coach Vilet De Leon of Team Sparkle; (seated, from left) Paul Reyes of ESPN 5; PSL ing in 2005. Since then, the team skipped President Ian Laurel; PSL Director Ginuio Panganiban and LVPI Vice President Peter Cayco. Games Today (Filoil Flying V Centre) 3 p.m. – Opening ceremony 5 p.m. – PSL Shine vs National Team 7 p.m. – PSL Sparkle vs University of Tsukuba

AFP Cavaliers stretch UNTV Cup win streak to 5 DEFENDING champion Armed Forces of the Philippines extended its winning streak to five games while Department of Environment and Natural Resources stunned Malacañang-Philippine Sports Commission, 80-77, in the 8th UNTV Cup held over the weekend at the Pasig City Sports Center. Games Wednesday (Pasig City Sports Center) Taped as live (for airing on Nov 10) 4 p.m. – NHA vs DENR 5;30 p.m. – NHA vs DNR 7 p.m. – PNP vs GSIS

AFP guard Boyet Bautista goes for a basket during their game against Ombudsman in the 8th UNTV Cup held over the weekend at the Pasig City Sports Center. The AFP Cavaliers won, 92-74.

The AFP Cavaliers bucked a slow start to beat the Ombudsman Graftbusters, 92-74, to stay unbeaten in the Group A elims of the annual tournament for public servants. The Cavaliers erased a 20-13 first quarter

deficit as Romeo Almerol and Wilfredo Casulla struck hard in the middle quarters, giving them a 67-55 lead going into the payoff period which they protected to prevail. Almerol topscored for the Cavaliers with 21 points, Casulla added 17 while former Letran star Boyet Bautista and Jerry Lumungsod had 17 points each. The DENR Warriors, on the other hand, leaned on the clutch plays of Ed Rivera and Arturo Atablanco to notch their fourth straight win while snapping the four-game winning run of the Malacañang-PSC Kamao in Group B. Rivera led the Warriors with 22 points while Atablanco posted five points, seven assists and four rebounds in another solid all-around game, In the other Group A match, PhilHealth improved its record to 2-3 with a 104-80 drubbing of SSS.

marathon SEAG venue

THE flat roads inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone will serve as the new venue of the marathon event of the 30th Southeast Asian Games. An ocular inspection has started this week after technical officials made a survey on the undulating course in Capas, Tarlac, which was earlier presented by organizers. Philippine SEA Games organizing committee executive Tom Carrasco said the layout of the original course in Tarlac was rejected. “The options for the new race will be submitted to the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association after the November holidays,” said Carrasco. In the proposed layout, the last 10 kilometers of the race will end up in a 2.4-kilometer route around the parade grounds. Competition manager Jeannette Obiena will help the PATAFA evaluate the proposed route. The last part of the route, according to Carrasco, is expected to attract a large number of spectators. The men’s and women’s marathon events are scheduled on Dec. 6. Two-time marathon champion Soh Rui Yong of Singapore won’t be defending the men’s crown for the third time. Singapore’s National Olympic Committee has turned down Singapore Athletics’ nomination for Soh to be part of the national delegation. The SNOC explained in a statement that “since the 2017 SEA Games, there have been numerous instances where Soh has displayed conduct that falls short of the standards of attitude and behaviour that the SNOC expects of and holds its athletes to, considering that they are held up and seen as representatives of the country and as examples to our sporting youth.” The PATAFA is fielding in Jerald Zabala, and Anthony Nerza, who took the place of Rafael Poliquit Jr., who passed away last March while preparing for the Games and after contracting an illness. Peter Atencio

IN BRIEF CAB approves rules on delayed air flights

THE Civil Aeronautics Board approved the rules and regulations penalizing airlines for chronic flight delays. “It was approved by the board last board meeting. So the features of this new regulation (is) we will be penalizing airlines who would be found to have more than 50 percent of their flights delayed or canceled for whatever reason,” said CAB executive director Carmelo Arcilla. “Irregardless of whether it is force majeure or technical or what if your flight is incurring delays for more than 50 percent of the time... this means you have to go back to the drawing board and review your plans because it is not viable,” he added. Arcilla said the agency would impose monetary penalties on chronic flight delays or removal of a particular flight. “Our goal is to attain efficiency, stability and reliability of the services,” he said. Arcilla said the agency would look at the overall performance for a significant period of time. The on-time performance or OTP is a standard aviation measurement to track the day-to-day performance of an airline and reflects the level of success in adhering to the published schedule. Darwin G. Amojelar

First Metro, UA&P see Q3 GDP growth of 6%

ECONOMISTS from the First Metro Investment Corp. and University of Asia and the Pacific said the economy likely grew 6 percent in the third quarter, faster than 5.5 percent a quarter ago, boosted by the government’s higher fiscal spending and aided by the easing inflation rate. In their joint Market Call report for the month of October, the economists expected GDP growth to accelerate to 6 percent in the third quarter and even faster in the last quarter, as domestic demand revved up further. “With inflation going much below Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s target range [of 2 to 4 percent] and national government spending on the upswing, we remain more optimistic on the growth prospects for the second half,” they said. “With inflation holding below the 2 percent BSP floor in the second half, and huge employment gains [supported by second lowest self-rated poverty rate of 42 percent in the third quarter as estimated by SWS], consumer spending shall show even more robust growth,” they said. Julito G. Rada

Business

SM Prime bares 18% increase in profit to P27.6b PROPERTY developer SM Prime Holdings Inc. said Monday net income rose 22 percent in the third quarter to P8.30 billion from P6.82 billion in the same period last year on strong contribution from residential and mall businesses. SMPH said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the third-quarter revenues climbed 13 percent to P27.98 billion from P24.79 billion a year ago. The strong third-quarter earnings pushed SMPH’s nine-month income net income to P27.60 billion, up 18 percent from P23.44 billion in the same period last year as the ninemonth consolidated revenues rose 14 to P85.03 billion from P74.56 billion. Consolidated operating income climbed 17 percent to P41 billion from P34.91 billion last year. “SM Prime’s recent developments and expansion programs in various progressive cities in the Philippines have contributed significantly to the company’s strong performance in the first nine months of 2019. Our core businesses, led by the malls and residential segments, are set to sustain the strong performance as we approach the fourth quarter of the year,” SMPH president Jeffrey Lim said. Mall revenues recorded an 8-percent growth in the first nine months to P42.03 billion from P38.86 billion while same-mall sales growth was sustained at 7 percent. Mall operating income increased by 9 percent to P23.95 billion from P22 billion, while operating income margin was stable at 57 percent. SMPH currently operates 81 malls, of which 74 are located in the Philippines and seven in China. The company opened SM City Olongapo Central in the third quarter and SM Center Dagupan in October. Jenniffer B. Austria

business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

MWSS sitting on Wawa water option By Jenniffer B. Austria and Othel V. Campos

he development of Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project in Rizal province could be delayed by a year as the project proponent―WawaJVCo, a joint venture between Enrique Razon’s Prime Infra and Oscar Violago’s San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders Group―is still awaiting final approval by state-run Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System.

WawaJVco said while it continued to push for the project aimed to avert the water crisis in Metro Manila, the MWSS was allegedly sitting on the remaining approvals to finally move the project forward. WawaJVCo said in a statement the development works to ensure water supply delivery of 80 million liters per day

in 2021 and more than 500 MLD in 2025 that would address the ongoing water crisis in Metro Manila might not push through as planned. The joint venture said it continued to wait for the final approval of the project from the MWSS, more than seven months after Manila Water Company Inc. dis-

closed to the Philippine Stock Exchange that it signed an agreement with Prime Infra over the development of the Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project―a new water source development at no cost to the government. “After a series of technical workshops and review by MWSS and the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel, the offtake agreement was signed by MWSS, MWC and WawaJVCO last August 6, 2019,” WawaJVCo said. This was followed by a series of public consultations all over the East Zone from Sept. 3 to 9, 2019 led by the MWSS Regulatory Office. “Project details were presented to the public alongside the tariff impact The presentation was well-received by the public because it was clear that this project is the most efficient and fastest solution to the

ongoing water crisis. Subsequently, the MWSS board approved the tariff,” the joint venture said. “While WawaJVco on its side continues to move forward with the project on the basis that the August agreement signing was the takeoff point, at the moment, the MWSS continues to sit on the remaining approvals to finally move the project forward,” it said “We are ready to move forward and have been proactively working with all stakeholders, public and private, to progress this project since 2018. Wawa is the fastest and least expensive water source development and comes at no cost to the government. We are hopeful that the final steps will be taken in the coming days to finally deliver a project of critical importance to the residents of Metro Manila,” said Razon.

Cebu Pacific, Airbus sign $4.8-b deal for 16 A330 planes By Darwin G. Amojelar

DOE’s call to revise Meralco terms backed

POWER for People Coalition (P4P) is supporting the call of the Department of Energy on retailer Manila Electric Co. to revise its bidding terms of reference to give power suppliers more flexibility. P4P is also urging Meralco to include more renewable energy sources in theenergy mix during the competitive selection process, or public bidding. Meralco has solicited bids for 1,200 megawatts of supply starting 2024 over a 20-year period using high efficiency, low emissions technology. “We welcome the announcement of Secretary Cusi calling on Meralco to change its terms of reference for its competitive selection process. However, we are not happy that the changes he asks for will just allow more coal-fired power plants to participate, instead of taking the opportunity to obey President Duterte’s directive to have more renewable sources available to Filipinos,” said P4P Convenor Gerry Arances. Alena Mae S. Flores

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor

TAX REFORM FORUM. The Department of Finance hosts a forum on the Comprehensive Tax Reform program for the University of the Philippines School of Economics Alumni Association. UPSEAA president Jeffrey Ng (second from left) hands over a plaque of appreciation to Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick Chua (third from left), himself a UPSE alumnus, as the main speaker. With them are (from left) fellow UPSE alumni, former Finance Undersecretary Romeo Bernardo, assistant secretary Teresa Habitan and undersecretary Gil Beltran.

Security Bank’s net income climbs 18% to P7.7b By Julito G. Rada SECURITY Bank Corp., the seventhlargest lender in terms of assets, said Monday net income jumped 18 percent in the first nine months to P7.7 billion from a year ago, on the back of the sustained strength of core businesses. The bank said in a statement net interest income from customer loans and deposits/peso bond issuance surged 41 percent to P15.9 billion. Interest income from financial investments increased 7 percent to P7.8 billion. Total net interest income grew 23 percent to P18.9 billion. Service charges, fees and commissions in the nine-month period also jumped 45 percent to P2.9 billion. Securities trading gains reached P1.4 billion, while total revenues rose 29 percent to P24.2 billion. Income before provision for credit losses and income tax in the nine-month

period climbed 31 percent to P11.3 billion. Income before provision for credit losses and income tax in the third quarter 2019 was P4.2 billion, up by 38 percent year-on-year. Cost-to-income ratio stood at 53.3 percent despite the 27-increase in operating expenses in the first nine months, excluding provisions for credit and impairment losses, mainly due to gross receipts and documentary stamp taxes and manpower costs to support growth of the retail banking business. Excluding GRT and DST, operating expenses grew 17 percent and cost-toincome ratio was 43.9 percent. The bank said asset quality remained healthy, with gross non-performing loan ratio at 1.4 percent, lower than industry’s 1.7 percent as of August 2019. Under the new BSP regulations implemented last year requiring expected credit loss provisioning by banks, Security Bank set aside P1.1 billion for provision for credit losses in

the third quarter. This brought provision for credit losses in the nine-month period to P1.75 billion. NPL reserve cover was 110 percent, and inclusive of reserves in retained earnings, NPL reserve cover was 146 percent. Security Bank said in the third quarter, net income rose 22 percent year-on-year to P2.7 billion as total revenues grew 35 percent to P8.8 billion. “The growth in revenues was driven by core business income. Net interest income from customer loans and deposits/peso bond issuance increased 49 percent year-on-year to P5.9 billion. Key to this growth was the continued expansion of retail loans and low-cost deposits, and disciplined pricing in wholesale loans,” it said. Retail loans increased 54 percent year-on-year. Retail loans now account for 27 percent of total loans versus 19 percent a year ago.

CEBU Pacific said Monday it signed a purchase agreement with Airbus for the acquisition of 16 A330 long-range aircraft for $4.8 billion. The 16 A330neo aircraft are scheduled for delivery between 2021 and 2024. The order accelerates the carrier’s plan to boost capacity while shifting to more fuel-efficient and eco-friendly aircraft. Cebu Pacific said it would have an all-next generation fleet of Airbus jets by 2024. The purchase agreement is a part of the memorandum of understanding signed by Cebu Pacific with Airbus in June 2019 during the Paris Air Show for an order of 31 next generation aircraft which also includes 15 A320neo family aircraft. The 16 A330neo aircraft will be fitted with up to 460 seats, with 5 percent more capacity than the current A330ceo aircraft in the Cebu Pacific fleet. Cebu Pacific plans to utilize the aircraft on trunk routes within the Philippines, the rest of Asia and on long-haul routes to Australia and the Middle East. “The A330neo is integral to our fleet modernization program. With this purchase, we aim to reduce our fuel emission and build a more sustainable operation,” said Cebu Pacific president and chief executive Lance Gokongwei. “This will also give us the lowest cost per seat, at the same time enabling CEB to increase seat capacity and maximize valuable airport slots in Manila and other Asian megacities,” Gokongwei said. Airbus chief commercial officer Christian Scherer said Cebu Pacific is a pace-setter and surely one of the most respected and well-managed airlines in the low-cost sector. “This new order is another important endorsement for the value-based proposition that the A330neo brings to highly competitive markets. The increased capacity version of the aircraft developed for Cebu Pacific will help achieve even greater efficiencies for high density regional and long range routes,” Scherer said.

Savings of Pag-IBIG members rose 26% to P37b in 9 months

PHOENIX-GLOBE TIE-UP. Phoenix LPG Philippines Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., now offers free mobile calls to its Super LPG delivery hotline powered by Globe Business, the enterprise arm of Globe Telecom. Leading the launching of the partnership are (from left) Phoenix LPG general manager for Visayas and Mindanao Evelyn Gerodias, Phoenix LPG president Henry Fadullon, Globe chief commercial officer Albert de Larrazabal and Globe Business senior vice president Peter Maquera.

PAG-IBIG Fund members saved P36.95 billion in the first nine months, up 26 percent year-on-year and setting a new record for the highest amount saved by members for the nine-month period. “We are happy that more Filipino workers are saving with the Pag-IBIG Fund. The trust and confidence in our savings programs continue to grow as proven by our record-high members’ savings collections in January to September 2019,” said Secretary Eduardo del Rosario, chairperson of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council and Pag-IBIG Fund board of trustees. “This is good news because the increase in the savings collected shall allow us to finance the increasing demand for our home loan and short-term loans, and thus allow us to serve more members. This is in line with the directive of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to provide social benefits to more Filipinos,”

said Rosario. Pag-IBIG Fund chief executive Acmad Rizaldy Moti said that the increase in savings was not confined to the mandated regular savings of its members. He also attributed the record-high number to the increasing popularity of its Modified Pag-IBIG 2 Savings Program. Collections from its MP2 Savings in the first nine months surged to P8.28 billion, nearly double the amount saved by members in 2018, and up by 176 percent from the P3 billion collected in the same period last year. The MP2 Savings is Pag-IBIG Fund’s voluntary savings program that yields higher dividends compared to the agency’s regular savings program. The program has a five-year maturity period and minimum savings requirement of only P500. The Fund also opened the program to retirees and pensioners who are former Pag-IBIG Fund members last year, further driving growth.

Business

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Stocks climb; ICTSI, BDO advance T HE stock market advanced Monday following a forecastbusting US jobs report, and on growing optimism that China and the United States will finally sign off on a mini trade pact.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index rose 82.53 points, or 1 percent, to 8,059.65 on a value turnover of P6.6 billion. Gainers overwhelmed losers, 120 to 62, with 41 issues unchanged. Bloomberry Resorts Corp., a casino operator owned by tycoon Enrique Razon Jr., climbed 5.7 percent to P10.56, while sister unit International Container Terminal Services Inc., the biggest port operator, gained 2.8 percent to P122. BDO Unibank Inc., the largest lender in terms of assets, edged up 3.2 percent

to P159.90, while Manila Electric Co., the biggest retailer of electricity, added 2.5 percent to P347. Asian investors took their lead from another record-breaking close on Wall Street, which came at the end of a strong week for equities thanks to strong earnings and another Federal Reserve interest rate cut. The Labor Department said the US created 128,000 net new jobs in October, surpassing the 80,000 expected, while the figure for the previous two months was also revised upwards. Friday’s reading came days after data showed the world’s top economy slowed slightly in July-September but not as much as projected, suggesting it is stabilizing. The figures helped the S&P 500 to a new all-time high, while the Dow moved to within a whisker of its own record. Asian investors took up the mantle on Monday, with Hong Kong, Seoul

and Taipei each piling on more than one percent, while Shanghai jumped 0.6 percent. Sydney was 0.3 percent up, Singapore added 0.1 percent, Bangkok jumped more than one percent, Mumbai edged up 0.2 percent and Wellington climbed 0.4 percent. Tokyo was closed for a public holiday. The upbeat mood was enhanced by comments from Chinese Vice Premier Liu He that indicated trade talks with Washington were on track. Liu said he had spoken on Friday to US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, with both sides saying the talks were “constructive.” “Everyone is kind of upbeat around the prospect of at least a partial ChinaUS trade deal,” Peter Dragicevich, a strategist at Suncorp Corporate Services, told Bloomberg TV. “It’s going to keep equities pretty sup-

ported.” Progress on the discussions has provided support to equities for the past few weeks, with speculation that Donald Trump and Xi Jinping will meet this month to sign off on the mini pact. While the agreement would only be the first part of a wider deal, it would be a major step after more than a year of a trade war that has dealt a blow to the world economy. However, National Australia Bank’s Rodrigo Catril warned there were still important issues to address. “Importantly, as much as the US-China trade updates continue to point to a phase one deal looking like a certainty, the contentious issues on whether the US will cancel the planned December tariffs and remove some of the current tariffs in line with China’s demands remains an unknown and if the issue is not resolved then a deal could easily collapse,” he said in a note. With AFP

Manila Standard BuSineSS daily StockS review Monday, noveMBer 4, 2019

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING),

FINANCIALS 55.4 10,830 97.3 4,023,400 1.93 2,085,000 159.9 2,114,390 1.17 123,000 25.3 22,700 18.6 500 12.92 1,468,500 4.77 68,000 1.2 50,000 770 70 0.4 160,000 66.4 2,817,100 0.88 304,000 13 20,600 45.4 62,400 175 440 130 60 57.9 800 26 56,100 204 286,800 61 50,910

596,275.50 395,105,179 4,023,920 331,981,695 137,690 574,605 9,180 18,869,284 317,330 60,810 53,900 64,250 187,300,160 268,380 267,618 2,824,560 76,770 7,800 46,240 1,458,375 58,401,848 3,107,824

333,976 15,085,060 -3,998,960 158,087,374 2,535 3,763,552 18,274,183 5,280 980,235 -33,250 -2,580 27,765,468 -1,476,964

39.5 2.78 13 0.67 1.31 3.78 0.241 2.51 15.02 112.1 8.31 17.36 30 65.35 71.55 2.1 5.47 8.48 15.14 10.2 6.99 1.65 24.75 78.9 47.8 2.18 14.58 7.89 1.44 231.8 3.54 9.04 19.82 13.2 17.52 345 1.68 4.15 5.01 9.44 10.82 33.8 5.4 5.37 1.86 1.98 0.98 11.28 91.15 7.37 0.126 1.07 151.1 1.31 1.07

INDUSTRIAL 40 967,800 2.79 5,628,000 13.7 489,100 0.68 172,000 1.31 14,000 3.99 6,540,000 0.248 1,480,000 2.56 1,600,000 15.1 2,342,600 120 890 8.32 1,652,600 17.98 400 30.65 21,600 65.5 980 71.55 400 2.13 421,000 5.47 7,600 8.49 1,687,000 15.24 74,800 10.3 921,200 7 310,700 1.65 2,000 25.35 774,300 79 42,890 48.05 45,700 2.21 11,866,000 14.58 33,100 8.04 294,400 1.5 453,000 233 248,530 3.55 9,000 9.23 3,700 19.86 1,395,700 13.24 60,000 17.7 862,600 347 163,590 1.7 1,489,000 4.25 25,000 5.06 627,900 9.44 5,700 11 15,000 34 393,400 5.5 54,300 5.49 456,800 1.91 1,198,000 1.98 138,000 1 59,000 11.46 12,900 92.9 26,930 7.49 142,200 0.126 880,000 1.1 288,000 154.8 1,421,330 1.33 4,858,000 1.11 1,234,000

38,696,540 15,733,070 6,589,416 116,350 18,340 25,863,720 8 358,120 4,082,220 35,338,022 106,451 14,071,404 7,006 654,590 64,072.50 28,620 893,490 41,665 14,335,860 4 1,139,548 9,483,028 2,173,636 3,300 19,559,835 3,388,735 2,195,220 26,202,140 483,016 2,347,485 665,080 57,767,174 31,940 33,689 27,776,122 794,464 15,206,646 56,756,052 2,526,560 103,850 3,180,453 53,853 163,776 13,360,610 298,020 2,475,103 2,302,380 278,700 57,860 145,988 2,488,414.50 1,061,082 111,360 311,430 216,371,205 6,438,540 1,356,650

21,616,195 196,060 1,269,560 ,453,210.0001 -691,450 -12,386,150 -1,069,542 -651,545 -6,584 ,222,759.9999 351,132 -7,101,702 -1,187,903 7,182,825 15,150 2,036,825 -239,710 -43,800 1,292,737 15,000 11,391,742 -6,485,706 -15,930 -13,006,182 4,039,592 1,312,750 678,115 9,485 7,505,775 208,344 -40,740 -23,796 -282,665.50 740 11,253,297 53,710 1,100

5,125,250 42,581,280 25,281,492 102,250 44,790 77,738 440,810 621,385,350 1,009,490 20,830,614 127,619,037 248,342 35,987,045 95,529,136 27,490 1,965,710 30,281,922 157,858,390 95,000 41,407,725 476,160 1,165,743,050 127,530 1,270 7,352 72,586 10,800

-279,170 23,383,006.50 2,720,752 -80,391,930 130,270 909,020 -37,002,020 -34,346 27,419,620 36,795,387.50 -1,878,980 -2,549,918 12,887,590 6,181,590 569,504,060 31,764 -10,800

189,530 408,610 496,600 400,176,240 699,040 376,680 275,276 22,919,640 28,710 1,270,100 1,821,280 4,785,100 1,387,050 32,033,220 41,640 24,675,810 697,800 1,261,300 2,929,250 3,800 135,390 16,160,270

-83,657,835 -494,380 -55,440 257,003 -182,790 347,900 1,098,762 1,930,295 -485,050 -3,798,030 -9,927,700 -1,147,250 -160,590 12,553,120

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

ASIA UNITED BANK PH ISLANDS BDO LEASING BDO UNIBANK BRIGHT KINDLE CHINABANK COL FINANCIAL EAST WEST BANK FERRONOUX HLDG IREMIT MANULIFE MEDCO HLDG METROBANK NTL REINSURANCE PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PHIL STOCK EXCH PHILTRUST PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK

54.35 97.55 1.92 154.1 1.11 25.4 18 12.58 4.57 1.23 770 0.405 67.6 0.88 12.7 44.95 175 130 57.5 25.9 199.1 61.2

55.6 98.7 1.93 159.9 1.18 25.4 18.6 12.94 4.84 1.23 770 0.405 67.6 0.9 13 45.9 175 130 57.9 26 204.8 61.2

54.35 97 1.92 154.1 1.11 25.2 18 12.58 4.56 1.2 770 0.4 66.15 0.88 12.7 44.95 174 130 57.5 25.8 199.1 60.3

ABOITIZ POWER AC ENERGY AGRINURTURE ALLIANCE SELECT ALSONS CONS AXELUM BASIC ENERGY CEMEX HLDG CENTURY FOOD CHEMPHIL CIRTEK HLDG CNTRL AZUCARERA CONCEPCION CONCRETE A CONCRETE B CROWN ASIA DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP EMPERADOR EUROMED FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG GINEBRA GREENERGY HOLCIM INTEGRATED MICR IONICS JOLLIBEE MABUHAY VINYL MACAY HLDG MANILA WATER MAXS GROUP MEGAWIDE MERALCO PEPSI COLA PETROENERGY PETRON PHINMA PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL PRYCE CORP RFM CORP ROXAS AND CO ROXAS HLDG SFA SEMICON SHAKEYS PIZZA SMC FOODANDBEV SPC POWER SWIFT FOODS TKC METALS UNIV ROBINA VITARICH VULCAN INDL

39.5 2.81 13.4 0.69 1.31 3.89 0.244 2.51 15.1 112.1 8.85 17.36 30.55 65.35 71.55 2.12 5.48 8.54 15.48 10.2 7 1.65 24.8 78.9 47.8 2.27 14.6 7.9 1.47 232.8 3.54 9.05 20 13.22 17.78 347 1.7 4.15 5.04 9.49 10.82 34 5.4 5.37 1.94 2.08 0.98 11.28 92 7.37 0.132 1.1 152.5 1.35 1.07

40 2.82 13.7 0.69 1.31 4.03 0.248 2.56 15.22 120 8.9 17.98 30.65 65.5 71.55 2.13 5.58 8.54 15.48 10.3 7.01 1.65 25.35 79.4 48.45 2.28 14.62 8.06 1.51 233 3.55 9.23 20.05 13.32 17.78 348 1.71 4.25 5.09 9.49 11 34.05 5.55 5.49 1.97 2.08 1 11.48 92.9 7.5 0.132 1.1 154.8 1.35 1.12

VOLUME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

VOLUME

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING),

ROCKWELL SHANG PROP SM PRIME HLDG STA LUCIA LAND VISTA LAND VISTAMALLS

2.26 3.29 39 2.62 7.7 5.58

2.3 3.3 39.5 2.69 7.72 5.58

2.26 3.29 38.7 2.6 7.66 5.4

2.27 3.29 39.5 2.67 7.69 5.54

166,000 110,000 10,068,900 815,000 3,165,400 35,500

375,990 362,900 395,322,705 2,172,670 24,346,173 193,668

-23,000 227,913,790 160,200 -6,115,777 -

2GO GROUP ABS CBN ACESITE HOTEL ALLHOME APC GROUP APOLLO GLOBAL ASIAN TERMINALS BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY CEBU AIR CHELSEA DFNN INC DISCOVERY WORLD EASYCALL FAR EASTERN U GLOBE TELECOM GMA NETWORK GOLDEN BRIA HARBOR STAR IMPERIAL INTL CONTAINER ISLAND INFO ISM COMM JACKSTONES LBC EXPRESS LEISURE AND RES MACROASIA METRO RETAIL METROALLIANCE B NOW CORP PACIFIC ONLINE PAL HLDG PAXYS PHIL SEVEN CORP PHILWEB PLDT PREMIUM LEISURE PRMIERE HORIZON PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL SBS PHIL CORP SSI GROUP STI HLDG TRANSPACIFIC BR WATERFRONT WILCON DEPOT

11.18 18.6 1.65 11.5 0.54 0.042 18.2 2.44 10 92.4 6.69 5.13 2.06 9.05 920 1,840 5.26 430 1.63 1.71 121.8 0.106 4.73 2.31 13.56 3.07 20.8 2.43 1.09 3.54 2.68 8.2 2.79 149 3.04 1,104 0.66 0.485 40.55 76.45 8.92 2.58 0.68 0.33 0.67 16.5

11.2 18.7 1.69 11.5 0.54 0.042 18.2 2.52 10.56 95.5 6.75 5.35 2.06 9.2 920 1,860 5.27 430 1.63 1.71 124.1 0.11 4.8 2.46 13.56 3.14 21.5 2.44 1.09 3.7 2.68 8.27 2.79 149 3.09 1,127 0.68 0.49 40.9 76.95 9.29 2.62 0.68 0.35 0.68 16.9

11 18.56 1.63 11.46 0.51 0.042 18.2 2.44 10 92.35 6.69 5.13 2.06 9 920 1,834 5.26 430 1.6 1.7 120 0.106 4.73 2.24 13.56 3.07 20.8 2.38 1.09 3.5 2.64 8 2.75 149 3.01 1,100 0.66 0.48 40.55 75.55 8.92 2.58 0.66 0.325 0.66 16.5

SERVICES 11.02 18.6 1.69 11.48 0.51 0.042 18.2 2.48 10.56 95.3 6.71 5.3 2.06 9.15 920 1,846 5.27 430 1.63 1.7 122 0.11 4.77 2.3 13.56 3.12 20.8 2.44 1.09 3.64 2.66 8.25 2.75 149 3.02 1,111 0.68 0.485 40.7 76.1 9.29 2.61 0.67 0.345 0.67 16.82

13,100 153,300 5,000 11,230,900 9,864,000 300,000 1,100 238,000 12,938,400 148,740 199,300 26,000 1,000 69,600 20 50,690 24,700 10 337,000 141,000 2,303,440 520,000 1,619,000 145,000 100 215,000 941,700 338,000 5,000 11,057,000 63,000 5,900 66,000 1,770 419,000 64,520 2,368,000 2,070,000 75,800 98,310 3,600 470,000 6,043,000 50,230,000 393,000 902,000

145,102 2,860,750 8,310 128,942,086 5,126,470 12,600 20,020 593,380 132,938,600 14,154,790 1,339,732 137,880 2,060 629,328 18,400 93,597,385 130,129 4,300 544,870 239,750 283,027,881 55,440 7,709,960 335,140 1,356 666,410 19,812,825 815,250 5,450 40,163,590 167,710 48,135 181,960 263,730 1,268,860 71,903,895 1,591,860 1,001,600 3,088,675 7,478,929 32,919 1,223,460 4,051,040 16,957,300 263,490 15,179,836

5,590 5,748,950 -1,034,600 -36,960,512 9,300,092.50 -165,240 -34,072,090 170,000 58,981,058 166,290 -2,295 113,340 2,670 800 -85,680 247,340 -169,380 -16,557,570 -134,980 135,800 -50,910 -4,903,010 138,770 -3,876,410 13,860,032

ABRA MINING APEX MINING ATLAS MINING ATOK CENTURY PEAK DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL GEOGRACE LEPANTO A LEPANTO B MANILA MINING B MARCVENTURES NICKEL ASIA NIHAO ORNTL PENINSULA ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B PHILODRILL PHINMA PETRO PX MINING PXP ENERGY SEMIRARA MINING

0.0017 1.13 2.52 12.46 2.59 7.61 1.89 0.216 0.105 0.108 0.0092 1.17 4.02 1.08 0.89 0.012 0.011 0.011 10.14 3.55 12.76 23.35

0.0017 1.14 2.59 12.46 2.6 7.89 1.93 0.216 0.105 0.109 0.0092 1.22 4.16 1.08 0.89 0.012 0.011 0.011 10.5 3.55 12.96 23.75

0.0017 1.13 2.52 12 2.58 7.61 1.84 0.209 0.102 0.104 0.0092 1.15 3.99 1.03 0.84 0.011 0.011 0.01 10.14 3.44 12.6 23.35

MINING & OIL 0.0017 11,000,000 1.14 404,000 2.59 32,000 12.34 21,800 2.6 120,000 7.88 900 1.9 31,753,000 0.211 350,000 0.105 4,050,000 0.109 160,000 0.0092 1,000,000 1.17 27,000 4.12 11,171,000 1.07 8,000 0.87 158,000 0.012 38,400,000 0.011 683,700,000 0.011 4,500,000 10.28 526,200 3.46 72,000 12.84 622,700 23.65 595,200

18,700 460,500 80,720 263,162 311,080 7,039 60,094,960 74,750 419,340 17,100 9,200 31,600 45,589,180(11 8,410 134,470 427,400 7,520,700 49,300 5,495,628 250,460 7,981,120 14,039,925

-50,400 30,965,140 ,400,289.9996) -22,000 -3,490 452,236 6,269,790

ABS HLDG PDR AC PREF B1 DD PREF GLO PREF P GMA HLDG PDR GTCAP PREF A HOUSE PREF A LR PREF MWIDE PREF PCOR PREF 3A PCOR PREF 3B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2F SMC PREF 2G SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

17.7 500 101 505 5.15 980 99.7 1 101 1,051 1,081 78.2 75.15 76.2 75.5 75.3 75.7

17.72 500 101 505 5.15 980 99.7 1.02 101.5 1,052 1,081 78.2 75.15 76.2 75.5 75.3 75.7

17.7 500 100.5 505 5.09 980 98.15 1 101 1,051 1,081 78.1 75.1 76.1 75.2 75.1 75.7

PREFERRED 17.7 139,700 500 3,100 100.5 5,040 505 10,000 5.14 139,700 980 410 99.7 6,520 1.01 516,000 101.5 10,050 1,052 1,000 1,081 50 78.15 36,790 75.1 15,000 76.1 22,630 75.2 13,400 75.1 12,980 75.7 197,500

2,473,400 1,550,000 506,540 5,050,000 717,074 401,800 640,219 521,160 1,015,100 1,051,880 54,050 2,875,360.50 1,126,750 1,722,683.50 1,008,992 976,398 14,950,750

-2,468,084 133,027 -

LR WARRANT

1.57

WARRANTS 1.57 51,000

80,070

556,387 12,607,352 783,170

-1,005 -61,600 -

743,800

-29,975

49,899.60

NAME

ABACORE CAPITAL ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL ANGLO PHIL HLDG ANSCOR ASIABEST GROUP ATN HLDG A AYALA CORP AYALA LAND LOG COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV GT CAPITAL JG SUMMIT LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP METRO PAC INV PACIFICA SAN MIGUEL CORP SEAFRONT RES SM INVESTMENTS SOC RESOURCES SOLID GROUP SYNERGY GRID TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS

0.83 55.9 11.48 0.72 6.89 12.7 1.14 865 3.6 6.92 8.17 13.14 894 75.3 0.51 4.38 13.34 4.82 0.038 167.7 2.34 1,030 0.85 1.27 395 227 0.216

0.85 56.55 11.74 0.75 6.89 13.1 1.14 865 3.64 6.92 8.34 13.4 905 77.1 0.51 4.38 13.42 4.95 0.038 169.7 2.34 1,035 0.88 1.27 395 227 0.216

0.83 55.3 11.48 0.72 6.51 12.52 1.12 861.5 3.6 6.88 8.1 13.12 892.5 75.3 0.495 4.31 13.3 4.82 0.038 167 2.24 1,022 0.85 1.27 340.2 226.4 0.216

HOLDING FIRMS 0.83 6,130,000 56.55 756,500 11.7 2,169,400 0.74 140,000 6.51 6,600 13.04 6,000 1.14 392,000 864 718,920 3.64 279,000 6.91 3,018,100 8.21 15,508,100 13.38 18,600 905 39,970 77.1 1,244,560 0.495 55,000 4.37 455,000 13.38 2,264,000 4.9 32,251,000 0.038 2,500,000 168.2 246,450 2.24 209,000 1,025 1,135,880 0.85 150,000 1.27 1,000 340.2 20 226.8 320 0.216 50,000

8990 HLDG A BROWN ARTHALAND CORP AYALA LAND BELLE CORP CEB LANDMASTERS CEBU HLDG CENTURY PROP CITYLAND DEVT CYBER BAY DM WENCESLAO DOUBLEDRAGON EMPIRE EAST FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES PHIL INFRADEV PHIL REALTY PRIMEX CORP ROBINSONS LAND

14.86 0.82 0.86 49.4 2 4.5 6.33 0.62 0.87 0.49 10.22 20.2 0.49 1.62 1.27 4.85 0.29 0.41 1.56 0.38 2.02 25.5

14.86 0.82 0.88 49.9 2.01 4.58 6.35 0.62 0.87 0.495 10.44 20.75 0.49 1.65 1.27 4.89 0.295 0.415 1.58 0.38 2.04 26.4

14.8 0.8 0.86 48.9 1.99 4.5 6.15 0.59 0.87 0.48 10.22 20.2 0.48 1.61 1.26 4.82 0.29 0.39 1.52 0.38 2.02 25.5

PROPERTY 14.8 12,800 0.81 509,000 0.86 574,000 49 8,138,000 2.01 349,000 4.58 83,000 6.35 43,500 0.59 37,766,000 0.87 33,000 0.49 2,600,000 10.28 177,100 20.65 233,100 0.485 2,870,000 1.63 19,657,000 1.26 33,000 4.89 5,074,000 0.295 2,400,000 0.39 3,110,000 1.55 1,901,000 0.38 10,000 2.04 67,000 26.4 614,300

ITALPINAS KEPWEALTH XURPAS

6.51 11.3 0.94

6.69 12.2 0.95

6.41 11.3 0.93

FIRST METRO ETF

119.7

120.5

119.5

USD DMPL A1

10.02

Trading Summary

FINANCIAL

13,878,802

INDUSTRIAL

55,906,808

HOLDING FIRMS

70,288,707

PROPERTY

100,678,806

SERVICES

118,038,676

MINING & OIL

788,708,043

GRAND TOTAL

1,149,486,935

SME

6.5 11.98 0.95

85,700 1,064,200 831,000

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 120.5 6,190 DDS 10.02

4,980

VALUE 1,943.12 (up) 24.72 1,035,945,307.22 FINANCIAL 10,598.77 (up) 127.83 INDUSTRIAL 940,550,494.334 7,861.26 (up) 30.96 HOLDING FIRMS 2,562,763,194.28 PROPERTY 4,220.57 (up) 48.28 1,538.17 (up) 25.12 SERVICES 936,798,011.271 9,328.60 (up) 112.08 MINING & OIL 940,581,949.59 8,059.65 (up) 82.53 PSEI 143,296,174.61 All Shares Index 4,831.70 (up) 44.25 6,574,626,189.30 Gainers: 120; Losers: 62; Unchanged: 41; Total: 223

AC Energy takes control of Ilocos wind power plant By Alena Mae S. Flores AC ENERGY Philippines Inc. of conglomerate Ayala Corp. is taking majority control of North Luzon Renewables Energy Corp., which owns and operates an 81-megawatt wind farm in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. AC Energy, formerly Phinma Energy Corp., said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange its executive committee approved the signing of an agreement to buy the stake of Philippine Investment Alliance for Infrastructure (PINAI) in North Luzon Renewables. “The acquisition is subject to definitive documentation and approval by the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC),” AC Energy Philippines said. PINAI, a fund composed of Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) Pte. Ltd., Langoer Investments Holding B.V. and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), effectively has a 31-percent preferred equity ownership and 15-percent common equity ownership in North Luzon Renewables. North Luzon Renewables is a joint venture between AC Energy Inc. (AC Energy Philippines’ parent firm), UPC Philippines, Luzon Wind Energy Holdings (an affiliate of Mitsubishi Corp.) and PINAI. The wind farm started its commercial operations in November 2014. AC Energy, prior to the transaction, already owned the single biggest equity of 36 percent in North Luzon Renewables, the owner and operator of the country’s second biggest wind farm. North Luzon Renewables earlier announced plans to to expand the capacity of the Caparispisan wind project to 150 MW. “The expansion will have to still depend on several factors. One is the predevelopment, the permitting including service contract. We’ve already applied and we are still waiting,” AC Energy chief executive officer Eric Francia said earlier. Francia said his company was preparing the expansion project in time for the implementation of the renewable energy portfolio standards, which require power industry participants to secure a certain percentage of their respective annual energy demand from renewable energy. AC Energy Philippines is developing 2,000 MW of renewable energy in the country by 2025 that may require total investments of nearly $2 billion. The 2,000-MW RE target formed part of the 5,000-MW RE portfolio goal of parent AC Energy, officials said in an annual stockholders’ meeting Monday.

Pryce’s net income increased by 8% to P1.2b in 9 months PRYCE Corp. reported an 8-percent increase in consolidated net income in the first nine months of the year to P1.204 billion from P1.115 billion year-onyear. Pryce disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange gross revenues rose 4.2 percent to P7.887 billion in the nine-month period from P7.570 billion on year. “The above growth in revenues was achieved mainly due to a 9-percent growth in sales of LPG content, the company’s principal source of revenues,” it said. Pryce said sales volume of liquefied petroleum gas or LPG grew to 162,560 metric tons in 2019 from 149,160 MT in 2018 with the completion of some refilling plants and the increase in bulk sales in the Vis-Min areas contributing to the rise. Average LPG contract price during the nine-month period stood at $439 per metric ton, down 18.8 percent from $541 last year. LPG sales revenues, which include sales of LPG content, cylinders, LPG generators, and LPG stoves and accessories, accounted for the bulk of the company’s revenues at 93.64 percent in 2019, equivalent to P7.386 billion. Revenues from other product lines such as industrial gases, real estate and pharmaceutical products contributed P501.43 million during the period, or 6.36 percent of total revenues. Sales of industrial gases increased 6.7 percent to P341.46 million from P320.08 million. Sales of pharmaceutical products rose 18 percent to P37.32 million from P31.62 million. Pryce said although a modest contributor to total revenues, the pharmaceutical business of the company had consistently risen in terms of revenues and income over the past recent years. Alena Mae S. Flores

World

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019 CESAR BARRIOQUINTO, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

IN BRIEF

TOURIST DRAW. This picture

Moon, Abe hold ‘friendly’ talks

taken on September 25, 2019, shows flocks of pelicans and flamingos in the lake of Kerkini, near the Belles mountain (Belasitsa in Bulgarian) at the Greece and Bulgaria’s border. Where 30 years ago barbed wire fences guarded against trespassers between Bulgaria and its neighbors, tourists now get to hike amid rare flora and fauna in a nature park, part of a surprising legacy of the Iron Curtain which once ran across this region. AFP

BANGKOK―South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday held their first talks for more than a year on the sidelines of a regional summit in Thailand, Moon’s office said, with the neighbors’ relationship in dire straits. Ties between Seoul and Tokyo―both of them US allies facing the twin challenges of nuclear-armed North Korea and an increasingly assertive China―are at rock-bottom over a dispute related to Japan’s use of forced labor during World War II, with the countries trading retaliatory sanctions. Moon and Abe held a “very friendly and serious” dialogue that lasted 11 minutes on the sidelines of the ASEAN Plus Three summit in Bangkok, Ko Min-jung, the South’s presidential spokeswoman, told reporters. But she gave no indication of any concrete outcomes. “The two leaders agreed on the view that Korea-Japan ties were important and reaffirmed the principle that bilateral issues should be resolved through dialogue,” she said. Moon proposed they review a higher-level meeting if necessary, to which Abe responded that the neighbors should try to find a solution by using “every available means”, Ko said. AFP

‘Tougher line’ urged on HK

Iraqis revel in people power

AGHDAD―“I’m sorry, I can’t let you through without orders,” said the Iraqi civilian manning the makeshift checkpoint, smirking at the befuddled policeman he had waved down in the capital Baghdad.

After a month of defying official curfews and road closures to protest, Iraqis have flipped the rule book. One recent evening, police officers erected a row of concrete t-walls on the same street, sealing off access to Tahrir Square, ground zero for protests in the capital. Demonstrators―one riding a motorized red rickshaw known as a tuk-tuk―sprung into action, chasing down the police. The tuk-tuk came to a screeching halt in front of the truck, blocking its exit as young Iraqi men pressured officers to reopen the road to Tahrir. Improbably, the officers relented, and the enormous truck reversed up the road to lift the barriers as the

victorious tuk-tuk followed. In Diwaniyah, 200 kilometers south of Baghdad, the Protesters swiftly hung a sign nearby: “Re-opened government’s provincial headquarters has literally beby order of the people!” come a dump. Demonstrations broke out on October 1 in outrage The building has been shuttered since protesters over rampant corruption and unemployment. They stormed it last month, and now rubbish trucks and were met with a violent crackdown that left dozens residents add daily to the growing piles of trash there. dead. And in Rumaitha, the southern town known for Since resuming later last month, the protests have sparking Iraq’s 1920 revolution against the British shifted to campaigns of non-violent resistance. mandate, residents are giving the government a taste Across the country’s south, Iraqis are carrying out of its own medicine. sit-ins at schools, on highways and main bridges, and At the heart of a recent demonstration there, a pronear government buildings. tester grabbed a megaphone and cleared his throat. “No country? No class!” is the new slogan for thou“We are declaring a curfew on all government emsands of Iraqi university students and school children ployees and vehicles, and the closing of all party headManila refusing to go back to class until they see sweeping quarters!” he declared, as people cheered all around Standard reforms. TODAY him. AFP The teachers’ syndicate has exCITIBANK N.A. tended its strike, despite threats from Balance Sheet (Head Office and Branches) officials that protesting students or As of September 30, 2019 staff would face legal consequences. ASSETS Most official administrations have been shut in large cities, with large Cash and Cash Items Due from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas banners also proclaiming the new- Due from Other Banks Financial Assets at Fair Value through Profit or Loss found authority: “Closed by order of Available-for-Sale Financial Assets-Net Held-to-Maturity (HTM) Financial Assets-Net the people!” Unquoted Debt Securities Classified as Loans-Net Investments in Non-Marketable Equity Security-Net Loans and Receivables - Net Loans to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Interbank Loans Receivable Loans and Receivables - Others Loans and Receivables Arising from RA/CA/PR/SLB General Loan Loss Provision Other Financial Assets Equity Investment in Subsidiaries, Associates and Joint Ventures-Net Bank Premises, Furniture, Fixture and Equipment-Net Real and Other Properties Acquired-Net Non-Current Assets Held for Sale Other Assets-Net Net Due from Head Office/Branches/Agencies, if any (Philippine branch of a foreign bank) TOTAL ASSETS

FILM AWARDS.

BEIJING―Chinese state-run media on Monday called for a “tougher line” on the democracy protesters in Hong Kong, after a weekend of violence following Beijing’s plans to tighten control over the semi-autonomous city. Hardcore demonstrators in the financial hub smashed the windows of the official Xinhua news agency’s regional bureau on Saturday, capping another weekend of unrest that also saw scores of arrests and a gruesome attack on a pro-democracy lawmaker. “Intensifying violence in Hong Kong calls for [a] tougher line to restore order,” the state-run China Daily, an English-language mainland newspaper, said in an editorial. The protesters “court the indulgence extended to them by friendly local and Western media outlets, while seeking to silence those trying to put the protests in the spotlight of truth,” the daily said. “They are doomed to fail simply because their violence will encounter the full weight of the law.” The nationalist tabloid Global Times called in an editorial on Sunday for “Hong Kong’s law enforcement agencies to bring the mob to justice as soon as possible” for vandalizing Xinhua’s office.AFP

Current Quarter

Previous Quarter

589,892,282.80 46,985,644,029.63 1,387,923,414.69 5,589,354,862.46 43,463,050,145.66 209,094,838,166.50 15,030,700,000.00 111,915,330,776.74 83,593,558,209.29 1,444,750,819.53 1,316,020,008.68 227,434,200.00 1,218,123,881.01 5,207,814,799.85 315,080,095,791.28

621,229,927.02 30,276,407,380.48 830,303,534.15 13,642,652,142.53 48,546,561,284.52 210,288,275,520.16 10,661,200,000.00 109,651,215,015.97 91,255,183,343.46 1,279,322,839.27 1,579,388,006.42 227,434,200.00 1,266,430,258.71 4,447,666,080.91 311,726,348,334.90

1,552,151,049.86 199,078,684,382.96 24,537,981,613.74 21,407,564.45 21,407,564.45 8,226,366,486.01 14,286,444,494.24 45,664,824,156.46 293,367,859,747.72

1,992,353,416.31 207,046,217,363.82 17,965,379,165.40 28,847,905.54 28,847,905.54 9,619,019,616.37 13,715,658,072.01 42,819,421,640.29 293,186,897,179.74

7,408,973,407.66 1,143,415,144.78 13,159,847,491.12 21,712,236,043.56 315,080,095,791.28

4,688,022,681.86 691,580,982.18 13,159,847,491.12 18,539,451,155.16 311,726,348,334.90

471,288,581.62 3,541,925,122.78 540,721,664.05 2,599,033,540.78 173,420,121,269.00 12,635,009,739.53 488,592,951,857.92 35,205,370.48 35,205,370.48 145,026,816,691.65 420,550,557.44 827,283,624,395.25

460,661,708.48 3,193,050,425.24 307,036,801.45 2,540,260,371.90 167,227,889,235.00 15,021,474,439.86 490,181,708,814.35 35,043,665.51 35,043,665.51 187,069,687,809.51 236,004,742.12 866,272,818,013.42

212,652,272,223.09 2,112,683,237.06

213,553,226,173.31 1,985,627,813.88

1,382,367,272.21 0.65 527,398,711.15 0.25 257.34 152.83 4,812,510,961.23 91,533,506.68 0.04 -

1,291,627,864.19 0.60 455,956,157.92 0.21 252.78 153.73 5,180,815,986.47 89,310,318.92 0.04 -

0.02 30.48

0.02 28.62

14.99 14.29 14.29 -

17.63 16.94 16.94 -

29,718,952,105.41 342,349,175,800.34 8.68

36,358,729,635.00 339,292,563,008.32 10.72

188,030,264,201.48 71,770,665,830.64 261.99

192,511,861,099.82 64,415,499,639.32 298.86

LIABILITIES

Dakota Johnson poses in the press room during the 23rd Annual Hollywood Film Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 03, 2019, in Beverly Hills, California. AFP

Financial Liabilities at Fair Value through Profit or Loss Deposit Liabilities Due to Other Banks Bills Payable a) BSP (Rediscounting and Other Advances) b) Interbank Loans Payable c) Other Deposit Substitute d) Others Bonds Payable-Net Unsecured Subordinated Debt-Net Redeemable Preferred Shares Special Time Deposit Due to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Other Financial Liabilities Other Liabilities Net Due to Head Office/Branches/Agencies (Philippine branch of a foreign bank) TOTAL LIABILITIES STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY Capital Stock Other Capital Accounts Retained Earnings Assigned Capital TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY CONTINGENT ACCOUNTS Guarantees Issued Financial Standby Letters of Credit Performance Standby Letters of Credit Commercial Letters of Credit Trade Related Guarantees Commitments Spot Foreign Exchange Contracts Securities Held Under Custodianship by Bank Proper Trust Department Accounts a) Trust and Other Fiduciary Accounts b) Agency Accounts c) Advisory/Consultancy Derivatives Others TOTAL CONTINGENT ACCOUNTS

‘Eye-burning’ smog smothers New Delhi NEW DELHI―Millions of people in India’s capital started the week Monday choking through “eye-burning” smog, with schools closed, cars taken off the road and construction halted. A poisonous haze envelops New Delhi every winter, caused by vehicle fumes, industrial emissions and smoke from agricultural burning in neighboring states. But the current crisis has turned into the worst in three years, and New Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called for a range of measures to fight what he described as “unbearable pollution”. “There is smoke everywhere and people, including youngsters, kids, elderly are finding it difficult to breathe,” Kejriwal said in a Twitter video on Sunday. “Eyes are burning. Pollution is that bad.” Kejriwal’s government has ordered half the city’s private cars to be taken off the road, based on an odd-even registration plate system. Schools, which were closed on Friday last week, remained shut on Monday, and citywide construction was halted until Tuesday in Delhi and surrounding areas.

Kejriwal said authorities were also distributing face masks to schoolchildren. Other parts of the country have also been choked by smog, the government’s Central Pollution Control Board said Sunday. Authorities brought a van with an air purifier to the Taj Mahal, the country’s top tourist site 250 kilometers south of Delhi, with fears the pollution was damaging the 17thcentury marble mausoleum, the Press Trust of India reported. With a state election due in Delhi in early 2020, the pollution crisis has also become a casualty of political bickering, with each side blaming the other for the severe conditions. Kejriwal, who likened Delhi to a “gas chamber” on Friday, said his city had done its part to curb pollution and that the burning of wheat stubble residue on farms outside the capital was responsible for the smog. But national environment minister Prakash Javadekar accused Kejriwal of politicizing the issue, while an MP from the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dismissed the odd-even car rule as a “stunt” and said he planned to ignore it. AFP

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Gross total loan portfolio (TLP) Specific allowance for credit losses on the TLP Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) a. Gross NPLs b. Ratio of gross NPLs to gross TLP (%) c. Net NPLs d. Ratio of Net NPLs to gross TLP (%) e. Ratio of total allowance for credit losses to gross NPLs (%) f. Ratio of specific allowance for credit losses on the gross TLP to gross NPLs (%) Classified Loans & Other Risk Assets, gross of allowance for credit losses DOSRI Loans & receivables, gross of allowance for credit losses Ratio of DOSRI loans & receivables, gross of allowance for credit losses, to gross TLP (%) Gross non-performing DOSRI loans and receivables Ratio of gross non-performing DOSRI loans and receivables to TLP (%) Percent Compliance with Magna Carta (%) a. 8% for Micro and Small Enterprises b. 2% for Medium Enterprises Return on Equity (ROE) (%) Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) on Solo Basis, as prescribed under existing regulations a. Total CAR (%) b. Tier 1 Ratio (%) c. Common Tier 1 ratio (%) Deferred Charges not yet Written Down Unbooked Allowance for Credit Losses on Financial Instruments Received Basel III Leverage Ratio (BLR) on Solo Basis, as prescribed under existing regulations i. Capital Measure - Tier 1 Capital ii. Exposure Measure iii. Total BLR (%) Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) on Single Currency Basis, as prescribed under existing regulations i. Total High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA) ii. Total Net Cash Outflows iii. Total LCR (%)

Republic of the Philippines) MAKATI CITY ) s.s. We, ASIM MUNIR and AFTAB AHMED of the above-mentioned bank do solemnly swear that all matters set forth in the above balance sheet are true and correct to the best of our knowledge and belief. (SGD) ASIM MUNIR (SGD) AFTAB AHMED Country Finance Officer, Citi Country Officer, Director Managing Director SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me this 04th day of November 2019 at City of Makati, affiants exhibiting their Passport ID No. AH0727284 issued in Pakistan valid until December 15, 2028 AND Passport ID No. 530433199 issued in the United States of America valid until March 03, 2025 respectively. Doc No. 524 Book No. 114 Page No.106 Series of 2019 (MS-NOV. 5, 2019)

NOTARY PUBLIC ATTY. RAYMOND A. RAMOS Commission No. M-239/Notary Public for Makati City Until December 31, 2020/No.15 J.P. Rizal Extn. Cor. Tanguile St. Comembo, Makati City SC Roll No. 62179 / 04-26-2013/IBP No. 071434 / 01-29-2019 / Pasig City PTR No. MKT7378446 / 01-24-2019 / Makati City MCLE Compliance No. VI-0007878 / 4-06-2018

Jimbo Owen Gulle, Editor lgu@manilastandard.net editor.lgustandard@gmail.com

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

LGUs LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

BETTER ROAD. Public Works Secretary

Mark Villar (second from left) inspects Kaingin Road in Parañaque City with the executives of Cavitex Infrastructure Corp. and Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivares (right). Villar asked CIC to facilitate the repair of Kaingin Road to ease the traffic flow in the area, as it serves motorists from Parañaque and Las Piñas going to C5 Road via the new Cavitex C5 Link Flyover. Norman Cruz

Noisy tailpipes banned in Pasay, mayor reiterates PASAY City has ordered that noisy tailpipes— those that are intentionally made or altered to emit a loud sound—are not allowed on motor vehicles, both private and for public transport, plying the streets of the city. Such exhaust outlets have recently become widely used on motorcycles and tricycles, the city government said in a statement. Mayor Emi Calixto-Rubiano reminded Pasayenos and the general public that noisy tailpipes are prohibited in the city under Ordinance 6009, the Anti-Modified Tail Pipe Ordinance enacted last June. The measure defines modified tailpipes as “an alteration, replacement or removal of the original tailpipe or muffler/silencer or parts thereof, of a motorcycle and tricycle.” Penalties for violation of the Ordinance range from a fine of P2,000 for the first offense, up to, for the 3rd offense, a fine of P4,000, cancellation of Driver’s License, and cancellation of franchise of the transport business. Mufflers or silencers were developed as part of the exhaust gas system of vehicles to reduce the noise of their engines. But over the years, a number of vehicle owners have been removing these mufflers or modifying their vehicles’ exhaust system to make their engines emit various loud sounds. Ordinance 6009 states: “Excessive noise is a serious hazard to the public health and welfare, and that, exposure to certain levels of noise can result in physiological, psychological, and economic damage.” “Any sound becomes unwanted when it either interferes with normal activities such as sleeping, conversation, or disrupts or diminishes one’s quality life,” the ordinance adds.

NV spice farmers gain P7.1m in aid By Ben Moses Ebreo

RITAO, Nueva Vizcaya—The provincial government here has released P7.1 million in assistance to farmers to boost their production of garlic, onion and ginger here.

Juditte Asuncion, Provincial Cooperative and Enterprise Development Officer, said the check was recently given to the Federation of Aritao Growers of Onion, Garlic and Ginger Associations Inc. “The monetary assistance represents the seed working capital portion of the

P7.1-million support package for the Federation, which also includes production and marketing equipment,” she said. Asuncion added that the recipient farmers’ organization that grows onion, which is one among the recognized flagship commodities of the province,

is a beneficiary under the Investment in Rural Enterprise, and AgricultureFisheries Productivity component of the World Bank-funded Philippine Rural Development Program of the Department of Agriculture. The PRDP projects in the province were contained in a Memorandum of Agreement forged between the provincial government and the DA during the administration of former Gov. Ruth Raña Padilla. The PRDP, in partnership with local governments and the private sector,

aims to increase the productivity and income of farmers and fisherfolk, and make them more competitive by installing production and marketing support facilities, establishing viable enterprises, and upscaling products at the appropriate commodity value chain. Funding for PRDP projects for infrastructure development carries 80 percent of World Bank’s counterpart and requires, 10 percent each from the DA and recipient-LGUs, while for enterprise development-related projects, the counterparting scheme is at a 60-20-20 ratio.

Warlito Dacumos, AGOGGAI president, said they now have 11 primary association members composed of 927 farmers from the nine barangays of Aritao. “We are thankful for this support package, and shall endeavor to achieve the performance targets set by the PRDP,” he said. Dacumos added they hope to raise a counterpart fund to build a storage facility, which will cut production losses due to spoilage and help stabilize commodity supply and price levels.

DA, Pampanga hand out P7.7m in loans to 500 local rice farmers

SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga—About 500 farmers from two cities and three towns of Pampanga have received cash cards with P15,000 each under the Department of Agriculture’s Expanded Survival and Recovery Assistance Program for Rice Farmers. The DA, through the Land Bank of the Philippines, distributed P7.7 million in cash loan for the farmers in the cities of Mabalacat and Angeles and towns of Candaba, Magalang, and Sta. Rita. The distribution of the cash cards was held at the Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center in coordination with the Provincial Government of Pampanga. Another batch of farmers from other towns in Pampanga will also receive their cash cards on November 15, the provincial government said in a statement. Benjamin Baltazar, operations officer of the DA in Central Luzon said 33,000 farmers who are only cultivat-

ing one hectare of land or less are the most seriously affected by the low prices of imported rice and will be granted P15,000 in loans each. Baltazar said they will also receive a P5,000 as grant from the national government after the rules and regulations for distributing the funds are finalized. Agriculture Secretary William Dar earlier said that more farmers in Central Luzon will be able to avail themselves of the zero-interest loan to help cushion the effects of the Rice Tariffication Law. DA Regional Director Crispulo Bautista previously said that in Pampanga alone, there are around 4,000 farmer beneficiaries. Rolando Santos, Assistant Vice President and head of the lending center of the Land Bank here, said the SURE Aid second phase of distribution will continue up to Dec. 25 of the current fiscal year. Romeo Dizon

TOPNOTCHER’S REWARD. Muntinlupa City scholar Peter Matthew Fowler (left) receives a medal and P100,000 cash incentive from

Mayor Jaime Fresnedi (center) for ranking 1st in the 2018 Chemical Engineer Licensure Exam and 3rd in the 2018 Chemist Licensure Exam. Fresnedi lauded Fowler, currently a Graduate Researcher on R&D Center for Membrane Technology at Chung Yuan Christian University, Taiwan and hoped the scholar will serve as an inspiration to the city’s students in pursuing academic excellence.

Belmonte orders E-CLIP committee re-formed in QC for ex-rebels By Rio N. Araja QUEZON City Mayor Joy Belmonte on Monday ordered the reconstitution of the enhanced comprehensive local integration program committee that is tasked to provide assistance, such as livelihood, educational and medical aid, to rebel returnees or former rebels.

She issued Executive Order No. 40 to gather the E-CLIP, which now includes the mayor as the chairperson, commanding officer of the local Armed Forces of the Philippine reserve brigade as co-chairperson, and representatives from the Social Services Development Department, Department of the Interior and Local

Government, Quezon City Police District, and civil society organizations as members. According to Belmonte, the committee shall ensure the delivery of services under the national government’s ECLIP program, as well as ensure proper documentation and referral needs of former rebels to appropriate agencies

and partner institutions. The executive order mandated the SSDD to facilitate the profiling of the ex-rebels, assist them in completing the E-CLIP enrollment form, assist in the preparation of their integration and business plans, and resolve issues and concerns affecting the implementation of the E-CLIP.

Bataan hosts research confab

CHURCH CLEANUP. Kärcher, the world’s leading provider of efficient, resourceconserving cleaning systems, signs a memorandum of agreement with the San Agustin Administration to clean up the UNESCO World Heritage Site San Agustin Church, along with its adjacent convent, Convento de San Agustin. It is part of Kärcher’s cultural sponsorship program that aims to preserve historic landmarks around the globe. Pictured (from left) are Ramon Ramirez, Kärcher Philippines marketing manager; Rev. Fr. Roy Gallano, San Agustin Church Friar of the House; Mark Palisoc, Kärcher Philippines general manager; Rev. Fr. Ricky Villar, San Agustin Church director; Rev. Fr. Arnold Sta. Maria, San Agustin Church Parish priest; and Louella Revilla, San Agustin Church chief conservator.

BALANGA CITY, Bataan—The 2nd National Conference on Food, Environment, Engineering, and Technology organized by the Bataan Peninsula State University, is in sync with the innovation hub idea of the provincial government. “This is a great conference, for it brings research scientists, engineers, and other experts in our province, which is in line with our thrust to make Bataan an innovation hub,” Gov. Abet Garcia, the event’s guest speaker, told participants in the opening program. “Let us make this conference yearly,” added the governor, who also donated an undisclosed amount for the governor’s night, a socialization activity for

participants who came from as far as Mindanao. BPSU president Dr. Greg Rodis, in his message, said there is an urgent need for experts’ innovation to improve the quality of living of the people. “We are facing many challenges, experts in various fields can surely contribute through research works to hurdle them,” he said. Dr. Hermogenes Paguia, BPSU vice president for Research, Extension, and Training Services, said the conference serves as a venue for researchers to exchange ideas and even practices. “The university aims to be in the forefront of promoting science and technology innovation,” Paguia said. Butch Gunio

‘Casabwatch’ anti-trash group formed THE Calabarzon Regional Agencies of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of the Interior and Local Government have introduced the First Calabarzon Sanitasyon Basura Watch Program in a recent Regional Support and Catalyst Group Meeting. Casabwatch is a program in support of the Manila Bay Clean-Up and Rehabilitation Program, Manila Bayanihan para sa Kalikasan Advocacy, and Tayo ang Kalikasan. It aims to reduce the solid waste flowing in the waterways of Calabarzon and in Manila Bay through strict implementation of no littering and no illegal dumping of waste in the region. According to the report of the Environmental Management Bureau IVA, only two out of the 14 monitored bathing beaches connected to Manila Bay are within the standard fecal coliform level of 100 MPN/100 mL. Roy Tumandao

Life

Bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor manilastandardlife@gmail.com @manilastandardlife

HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT

@MStandardLIFE TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019

Test your limits H

IGH-INTENSITY and fast-paced. Action-packed and physically and mentally challenging. One heart-pumping sport checks all these boxes.

“OCR (Obstacle Course Race) is very challenging, and it has balance; whether you are a lifter or a runner, the playing field is leveled that you are neither ahead nor behind since you have to battle your way throughout the course to the finish line,” shares Chloe Jane Ong, a triathlete. OCR involves overcoming various physical challenges in the form of obstacles. It includes hurdles that test strength and coordination, such as carrying heavy objects, climbing up ropes, scaling walls, or navigating monkey bars. The environment also adds challenge to the sport, as the terrain could be wet, slippery, and muddy with the temperature being hot or freezing. OCR has already exploded onto the scene what with the growing number of athletes joining many races in the country and abroad, happening throughout the year. Ong shares she has been hooked to the sport because of its action-packed challenges. Meanwhile, Patricia Castillo, a former member of a dragon boat racing team, considers OCR as the most electrifying sport she has ever participated in as it requires mental and physical endurance. “I’ve joined different sporting events, and for me, OCR is, indeed, more exciting,” enthuses Castillo. “It’s not a stagnant sport with only one movement; you are expected to run and then, conquer obstacles. You also don’t know the obstacle you’ll see next so, there is excitement and challenge if you can do it or not. There is the varied crosstraining, you gain more friends, and meet a lot of people.” Despite being perceived as a tough race, Ong said that OCR is a sport for everyone. Just like any other physical activity, it is beneficial to health since it is a brisk exercise that strengthens the bones, works every muscle, helps brain function, and is good for the heart.

“OCR involves movement throughout the body. It is a vigorous sport that tests your body and mind to its limits. It also motivates and gives you a feeling of accomplishment whenever you overcome the obstacles,” adds Ong. Castillo, on the other hand, likens OCR to a big playground for adults. “I encourage everyone, especially gym-goers and fitness enthusiasts, to join the open events so they can experience it. The obstacles can be hard, but it is only a matter of a familiarization. Once you get the hang of it, then you’ll get to enjoy the sport.” Ong and Castillo recently qualified and competed at the Spartan World Championship on Sept. 28-29 in North Lake Tahoe. Qualified athletes from more than 30 countries joined in the competition, considered the highest and toughest OCR event. “With elite athletes competing all over the world, this is our most challenging OCR to date. We trained hard because the mental and physical demand that this race requires is different,” explains Ong. Aside from the obstacles, the cold -5°C temperature also added to the challenge. “I was at the Spartan World Champions last year for the group category, and it was tough. But this time, it was tougher with the cold temperature adding to the challenge,” relates Castillo. Ong and Castillo needed to level up their preparations for the championships, with intense training, weight lifting, leg strengthening for climbs, and practicing obstacles so that their body and mind can endure the terrain and challenges during the Spartan race. Ken Tan, the coach of the country’s national OCR team, helped them in preparing for the race. “Aside from physical training, we also have

Athletes Chloe Jane Ong and Patricia Castillo go on intense training to prepare their physical and mental health for the Obstacle Course Race.

By Bernadette Lunas MORE people are making their health a priority, according to several records and reports. The wellness market, which includes gyms and spas, is now valued at $4.2 trillion, the Global Wellness Institute said. The increasing popularity of health and wellness lifestyle has in turn resulted in the growth in spending on fitness classes, race events, healthy meal plan delivery, yoga and meditation, and health supplements, among others. “Aside from it has become more fashionable to have better looking physique, I think there is a growing recognition as well that you need to take care of your health and your body,” Citi Philippines consumer business manager Manoj Varma told Manila Standard. Varma said the health and wellness is currently the “fastest growing category within credit card.” And here in the Philippines, the official said, one of their top 5 merchants in credit card is Mercury Drug, the country’s leading drugstore. “Average spending per transaction basis is also increasing, higher than the average in the marketplace. It’s a sign that customers are thinking and acting

The Santé Barley OCR Team

to consider the proper diet. We also take supplements, like the Santé Boost Coffee with Tongkat-ali, which helped us increase our overall energy and metabolism, as well as to enhance our physical performance and increase muscle strength,” shares Ong. The OCR athletes both con-

sider their Spartan World Championship journey as a huge achievement. “As members of the Sante Barley OCR team, we are proud to represent the Philippines and, to qualify for such competition feels like an achievement already,” enthuses Castillo. Ong and Castillo are among the members of Santé Barley OCR Team, which is the second sports team under the brand with Santé Barley Tri-team being the first, founded seven years ago.

Ong and Castillo brought the Philippine flag when they competed in the previous Spartan World Championship.

provides cardholders with the best health, beauty, and wellness benefits. “Citi wants to equip customers with the tools that will allow them to be the best versions of themselves with the new Mercury Drug Citi card,” said Varma. The new card allows cardholders to earn more points through their Mercury Drug purchases as well as when they invest in their wellbeing, through gym memberships, salon visits, spa treatments, and clinic check-ups. Customers earn one point for every P200 spend anywhere (except drugstores other than Mercury Drug): get 5x points on Mercury Drug purchases (on up to P320,000 spend on Mercury Drug every month): get 3x points on health, beauty, wellness spend; get 18 percent off the annual membership fee at Kerry Sports Manila until Dec. 31; access free Emergency Ambulance Service with Lifeline once a year within Metro Manila; and avail of a free Annual Physical Exam with Healthcube until Dec. 31. Cardholders also earn points with no expiration and get preferred access to health and wellness events. Citi Philippines chief executive officer Aftab Ahmed, Mercury Drug assistant to the president Steven Azcona, Visa country manager Dan Mercury Drug Citi cardholders Wolbert, and Citi Philippines consumer business head Manoj Varma unveil the new Mercury Drug Citi card. can also redeem their points against more in terms of wellness, and looking category,” he shared. teams up with Mercury Drug to launch their billing statement at 1 point = 1 to spend more time and resources in that To cater to this growing trend, Citi the new Mercury Drug Citi card that peso conversion.

Citi launches wellness-focused credit card

Life

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

Affordable breast cancer treatment now in PH D

R. JORGE IGNACIO, medical oncologist and chairman of the Cancer Institute at the UPPhilippine General Hospital said biosimilars, an effective and affordable treatment for cancer, is now available in the Philippines.

The announcement was made at a press conference held recently, entitled, “Reaching More Patients with Breast Cancer.” The conference was addressed by leading oncologists from the US and Philippines. Speaking at the press conference, Dr. Ignacio explained that prior to the introduction of biosimilars, there was the expensive breast cancer treatment, Trastuzumab. Trastuzumab is a biologic drug that is used for the treatment of patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) positive breast cancer. Now that its patent has expired, biosimilars of Trastuzumab have been developed. The efficacy and safety of the biosimilar is similar to the originator. It is also much more affordable, thus increasing the access for breast cancer treatment to a wider number of patients. Dr. Hope S. Rugo, director and professor of Breast Oncology and Clinical Trials Education at the University of California, San Francisco—who was the key speaker at the press conference—defined biosimilars as medicinal products that have received regulatory approval because of their similarity to an existing biologic drug. Dr. Rugo also revealed that previously, because of the high cost of reference biologic medicine, only a small fraction of the total breast cancer patient population had access to the biologic drugs. According to the medical expert, biosimilars, which have been evaluated and studied thoroughly, are proven to be highly similar in terms of efficacy and safety to the approved reference biologic medicine. “Biosimilars have a variety of potential benefits. Additional treatment choices, lower costs, increased access, and savings. Now we clearly can save the lives of more women with breast cancer, the most common cancer worldwide and the most common cause of

Health experts gather at the ‘Reaching More Patients with Breast Cancer’ conference on biosimilars, an affordable breast cancer treatment.

cancer death in women,” said Dr. Rugo. Biosimilars will enable the UP-Philippine General Hospital to serve more indigent patients, said Dr. Ignacio. “Now there’s a choice. There’s hope that we can deliver what is due for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer with this affordable treatment. We will all do our part to bring cancer treatment to its ultimate level at the Cancer Center and have readied the requisition for this medicine,” said Dr. Ignacio. Dr. Jose Garcia Jr., current president of the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology, said, “It is time for us to get our act together to help the poor, marDr. Hope Rugo of University of California Dr. Jose Garcia Jr. of the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology ginalized cancer patients. Affordable medication is what is critically needed. dorsed the use of biosimilars and ex- battle cancer by offering biosimilars as If the practice allows for biosimilars to cure more cancer patients.” be used overall, it will cost even less to All three medical oncologists en- pressed hope that public health programs an option for cancer treatment.

6 signs anxiety is getting the best of you HMO stages health and fitness event The upcoming Maxifest: Live Your Best Life event invites everyone to join the running event.

IN A bid to encourage more individuals to “live their best lives,” a leading health maintenance organization provider will stage its biggest health and fitness event in December. Maxicare Healthcare Corporation is hosting Maxifest: Live Your Best Life at 5 E-Com in Harbor Drive, Pasay on Dec. 15. Event highlight is the run event organized in partnership with RUNRIO. “What makes this year’s Maxifest: Live Your Best Life different is that, aside from the series of running events which we have been doing for two years now, there will also be a Veggie Fest that will feature a festival of plantbased food products to promote healthy eating habits that one can incorporate into their life,” said Maxicare chief marketing officer Archie Rillo. The event will once again include a 500-meter dash for 3- to 12-year-old kids, 2k Senior Sprint for 60-year-olds and above, the basic 3k, the amiable distance of 5k, and the athletic 10k and 16k. The run is open to all. All runners will be given a race kit depending on their chosen course. It will include a race bib, timing chip, medal, singlet, and loot bag; an additional finisher shirt will be given to 16k runners. Assembly time is as follows: 500-meter dash is at 6:30 a.m.; 2k at 6:15 a.m.; 3k at 6:00 a.m.; 5k at 5:30 a.m.; 10k is at 5:00 a.m.; and 16k is at 4:50 a.m. Fees are P550 for the 500-meter dash; P650 for 2k Senior Sprint; P800 for 3k; P900 for 5k; P1,000 for 10k; and P1,100 for 16k. To generate more buzz and awareness

BEING anxious about situations with an element of uncertainty is but a natural reaction that usually dissipates once the triggers are resolved. Medical experts says worrying is natural, but anxiety becomes a cause for concern once a person begins to obsess about the “what ifs” of whatever it is they’re worrying about, to the point that it paralyzes them from thinking of or doing anything else. Dr. Carmina G. Bernardo from the Section of Psychiatry of Makati Medical Center identifies the symptoms of debilitating anxiety, and how one can overcome this heightened sense of dread and fear before it controls every aspect of their life.

Overthinking

“Worrying is normal, but when you constantly worry about someone or something, or worry even about the littlest things, that is a red flag,” Dr. Bernardo points out. “Worrying also becomes unhealthy when it gets in the way of more Worrying becomes unhealthy when it gets in the way of more important thoughts or daily important thoughts or daily activities.” activities, according to a medical expert.

The Veggie Fest will feature plant-based food products.

of the importance of health and fitness, Maxicare will attempt to break a Guinness World Record for the most number of people hugging a soft toy simultaneously as the event aims to gather over 4,000 runners and event guests. Each runner will be given a Maxibear, Maxicare’s official stuffed plushie, which runners will hug simultaneously to break the current world record. Cherry Run Elementary School in Burke, Virginia, USA is the current record holder. At the end of the event, runners have the option to keep the Maxibear as a souvenir, or to donate it to kids of Kythe Foundation, Inc., the beneficiary of the event, as an early Christmas gift. Kythe Foundation, Inc. is a non-profit, non-stock organization aimed towards improving the quality of life among hospitalized children with cancer and other chronic illness. “We hope that Maxifest will convince more and more people to make physical activity, as well as eating right, part of their daily routine to improve their quality of life,” said Rillo.

Poor concentration much are often too tired or drained for Poor concentration, which is a result of anything else. overthinking (or thinking of nothing else), leads to errors at school or work as well as Panic attacks oversights at home (e.g., leaving the fauWhile many have no qualms about cet running or forgetting to turn off the walking through a crowd, getting on a stove), which may cause accidents. plane, or encountering a dog, those with major anxiety issues freeze and even Difficulty sleeping freak out over the mere sight or thought of Yet another result of thinking too these stressors or phobias. “Phobia, or an much, according to Dr. Bernardo. extreme fear of something, can really in“When you obsess over a particular terfere with rational thinking and normal thought or fear, you can’t sleep, let functions,” explains Dr. Bernardo. alone relax.” Physical manifestations

Worrying too much elevates the heart rate and blood pressure. It makes a person sweat and hyperventilate. It tenses their muscles. And it affects their digestive system with hyperacidity, constipation, or diarrhea. “When the brain is convinced that there is some form of ‘imminent danger,’ the body automatically reacts,” says Dr. Bernardo.

Fatigue

An out-of-proportion sense of anxiety is both physically and mentally exhausting; hence, those who worry too

When to get help

While maintaining a regular exercise routine and balanced diet, and avoiding stimulants like caffeine and alcohol can help soothe frayed nerves, seeking professional help is strongly recommended when the anxiety begins to take over one’s life. “If your anxiety affects your daily activities and relationships, is difficult to manage on your own, or leads to depression—or worse, suicidal thoughts—do not hesitate to see your doctor immediately,” advises Dr. Bernardo. “Though anxiety is typically caused by a specific and external trigger,” she clarifies “some anxiety can also be

due to a pre-existing health condition like heart disease, diabetes, or hyperthyroidism. It can also be a side effect of certain medications. In these cases, a physician can help you address and hopefully alleviate your symptoms.” Speaking up about anxiety—whether in private to a professional, to a close friend, or as part of a support group— also helps ease woes. “Verbalizing your anxiety somehow relieves you from the weight of your worries,” says Dr. Bernardo. “Especially if you share your feelings with someone who listens, it makes you feel heard and cared for.” “More importantly, discussing your anxieties with others lessens the stigma surrounding mental health,” she adds. “It also encourages others to speak up about their own issues. When people open up about their anxieties in a supportive and trusting environment, it somehow lessens their loneliness and fears, and makes anxiety easier to conquer even if there are no immediate solutions.” For more information, contact MakatiMed On-Call at (02) 8888-8999, email mmc@makatimed.net.ph, or visit www. makatimed.net.ph.

Entertainment

Kathryn stoked for ‘HELLO, LOVE, GOODBYE’ international nod S CREEN star Kathryn Bernardo is both happy and proud that her latest movie Hello Love, Goodbye opposite Alden Richards is nominated in the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts as Best Asian Film. In a recent interview, the 23-yearold actress said she got surprised upon learning about it. “It’s overwhelming considering that we’re competing with other countries like Japan, China, India and South Korea. I’m so glad that we made it to the list. As a Filipino, it makes me feel proud that our movie has reached this far. Imagine, figuring prominently in an international film festival?” she says. Kathryn believes that to be nominated is already a major achievement. “I’m okay with that. Let’s hope for the best though,” she adds. The list of winners will get released on Dec. 4 and this early, Kathryn is so thrilled with this development. Meanwhile, after doing the the successful movie with Alden, Kathryn still hopes that she would be paired with Daniel Padilla again in another movie. “I miss working with Daniel. I hope we’ll have a new film in 2020. Let’s

see what will happen. I don’t want to be selﬁsh with DJ. There are still a lot of actresses who can get paired with him. But for now, I just want to enjoy the moment,” she enthuses. Kathryn wants to assure the fans though that she is set to do a soap opera with Daniel next year. Their last show together was the hit horror-fantasy series La Luna Sangrein 2017. “They will start to pitch in stories before we leave for the States. Of course, we’re super excited with our reunion project. Viewers should watch out for this. For sure, we’ll be giving them another quality teleserye which is worth their time,” she assures. Daniel will be doing a movie without her. He will get paired with

another actress. “Oh, yes! I’m excited for him. Now, it’s my turn to support him. I’m really praying that everything will turn out well,” ends Kathryn. *** Ai Ai delas Alas remains a Kapuso after her contract was recently renewed by the management. “I’m really thankful to God and GMA of course for this blessing. And this time around, my contract with them is longer which is until March 2022!” she states. The Comedy Queen considers this development as an early birthday present. “I will be celebrating my birthday on November 11 and this is one of the greatest presents I received. As I’ve said, I’m thankful to GMA for their continued trust in me. Since I returned here in 2015, they really took very good care of me,” she says. “At least now, I’m assured that I’d be able to feed my family and support my charitable works. I’m simply blessed that I’m still a Kapuso. God is really good! He gives me abundant blessings,” she adds. With her new contract, Ai Ai reveals she wants to do a project with Derek Ramsay. “That’s true! I want to do a soap opera with him. I think it will be interesting. The same holds true with other Kapuso talents whom I haven’t worked with yet,” she says.

Kathryn Bernardo looks forward to doing another project with Daniel Padilla

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5 2019

nickie.standard@gmail.com

Ellinwood Chamber Orchestra

Faith Gospel Singers presents ‘Obra ng Maestro’ JOURNEY to an enriching musical experience as Faith Gospel Singers presents its 9th anniversary concert titled Obra ng Maestro featuring the Ellinwood Chamber Orchestra on Nov. 9, 6:00 p.m. at the Central United Methodist Church, Kalaw Ave, Ermita, Manila. Divided into four segments, the concert is a unique blend of Gospel songs, Original Pilipino Music, broadway and movie themes, and inspirational music. Repertoire includes ”Purihin Si Yahweh” by National Artist for Music Lucrecia Kasilag, ”Somewhere” from West Side Story, ”Circle of Life” from Lion King, ”Go the Distance” from Hercules, and ”When You Believe” from Prince of Egypt. The group will also cover OPM hits such as “Panaghoy,” Smokey Mountain Mountain’s ”Paraiso,” Joey Ayala la’s ”Manong Pawikan,” and Gary Valenciano lenciano’s ”Gaya ng Dati.” FGS will also interpret AfricanAmerican contemporary gospel songs ”O Sifuni Mungu” and ”Baba Yetu,” which will showcase its choral versatility. Based at the Faith Baptist Church in Quezon City, FGS is a fellowship of

Christian singers that ministers through God-centered excellence and music. Its members are united by a passion to serve the Lord through music, having toured various churches in the country and Filipino communities in Asia. It has taken part at the 1st International Jazz Festival in 2011 and Marawing Salamat in 2018 held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The choir is directed by Naomi Sison, head of the UST Conservatory of Music’s piano department and a faculty member of the voice department. Ellinwood Chamber Orchestra, the string and wind ensemble of Ellinwood Malate Church, has performed at the Concert at the Park, UCCP churches, and has done music camps and outreaches in Batangas, Baguio City, and Rizal. It is conducted by George Bernard Supetran, a former principal violist of the UST Symphony Orchestra, also orchestrated some of the pieces in the concert. Admission is free. For inquiries and ticket reservations, visit Faith Gospel Singers Facebook page or contact 0917-8491409.

Highest rated K-Drama now on PH TV 'Sky Castle' follows the lives of four women living in a luxurious neighborhood. They try to make their husbands more successful and use every way they can think of to get their children into Seoul National University.

For theaters,... From C4

During that period, cable offerings significantly expanded, while VHS and DVD systems came and went. Many in the theater industry don’t see streaming as any more of a game-changer than other home-based offerings were in their heyday. “It’s really broadcast,” said Charles Cohen, who owns Landmark Theatres, an art-house chain. “You were watching through rabbit ears and then cable and now you’re getting it through the telephone line. Is it really any different?” Champions of the industry attribute the resilience of cinemas to the fact that going to the movies is still a relatively affordable outing for families and provides a communal experience distinct from watching at home. And for young adults and others, “going to the movie makes a good first or second date,” said Gabriel Rossman, a sociologist at the University of California Los Angeles. “You invite someone over for Netflix and it’s a hook-up.”

Protecting the ‘window’ The number of theaters fell sharply in the 1950s with the creation of television. But since then, new technologies have actually bolstered the business, according to owners’ association spokesman Patrick Corcoran. Corcoran thinks streaming could also boost theaters as online giants seek the big-screen experience to showcase their original content, including Oscar contenders. Some reports suggest that companies like Netﬂix are seeking to own theaters to control the process, but Corcoran doubts that they would move in that direction on any meaningful scale. “It’s a strange mix of retail and entertainment and media. It’s tough to get right,” Corcoran said. One challenge for theater owners has been the higher costs associated with digital technology, which over the last decade has replaced conventional ﬁlm at movie houses. Logan recently pushed back a stadium seating upgrade due to the increased budget needed to maintain and replace the equipment. Compared with projectors, digital technology is more vulnerable to electrical surges and must be kept at

lower temperatures, requiring new air conditioners in the projection room. Logan’s biggest fear is that ﬁlmmakers will try to reduce or eliminate the “window” between a traditional theatrical release and a streaming debut—something Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger has vowed to defend. “What you could see is the smaller market disappear,” Logan said. Bagby cited similar concerns. Adding comfortable reclining seats to a midsize theater can cost $300,000 and removes about half the capacity because they are bigger than conventional seats. But Bagby said the new seats vastly improve the quality of the viewing experience from the front rows and are a good investment overall. Bagby, 30, thinks the industry will be okay as long as there is a healthy gap between theatrical release and streaming. Theater owners have sharply criticized Netﬂix over its plan for Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman, which opened Friday in theaters in selected markets but will begin streaming on Nov. 27, a “window” of less than half the normal period of around 70 days. “The millennials want to go out,” Bagby said. “But if the window collapses, then it’s a whole different story.” AFP

YESTERDAY, Nov. 4, GMA Heart of Asia brings the hit Korean drama series Sky Castle to Philippine primetime television. The show’s highly relatable characters, gripping plot, and the cast’s impeccable performances will surely take the viewers to an emotional rollercoaster ride. Considered as the most talked about Koreanovela of 2019, Sky Castle was also named as Korea’s 55th Baeksang Awards’ Runaway Winner and the highest-rating drama in Korean cable TV history. The much-awaited Koreanovela on primetime, featuring a voice cast from seasoned Kapuso actresses, revolves around the lives of housewives living in a luxurious residential area called Sky Castle in suburban Seoul. Lotlot de Leon lends her voice to Sarah Han. Married to an orthopedic surgeon with two daughters, Sarah seems to have a perfect life. However, she hides a past that she tries to escape from. Angelu de Leon is the voice behind Arleen Lee, who is a writer of children’s books. She holds a deep affection and consideration for people. She is married to a neurosurgeon. Chynna Ortaleza breathes life

to Geleen No. She is married to a law school professor and they have two sons. Her husband talks about justice and happiness, but he hides a different side, one who has extreme egoism. Angelika dela Cruz will show off her voice acting via Ginny Jin who comes from a wealthy family. She admires Sarah and tries to copy what she does. She is also married to an orthopedic surgeon. Sunshine Dizon will be the voice of Korea’s most sought-after tutor Julie Kim. She’s strict, and sets a high standard in choosing her clients. Coming from prominent families, they are all determined to make their husbands more successful and to raise their children like princes and princesses. They all have one ambition - to get their children to Seoul National University Medical School. They are willing to go to extraordinary lengths just to make it happen. However, right before the beginning of the school year, tragedy strikes the Castle community, turning everyone’s lives upside down. Witness their riveting stories in Sky Castle, Monday to Thursday, after One of the Baes on GMA Telebabad.

Very Wang...

of ABS-CBN’s film outfits, Cinebro has produced films such as the hit movie AWOL, headlined byGerald Anderson, and Erich Gonzales’ first action movie We Will Not Die Tonight, and Derek Ramsay and Jessy Mendiola’s first team-up in the iWant original movieMga Mata Sa Dilim. Find out whether best friends will make it or break it in You Have Arrived streaming on the iWant app (iOs and Android) or iwant.ph for free. For updates, likewww.facebook.com/iWant, and follow @iwant on Twitter and @ iwantofficial and @dreamscapedigital on Instagram, and subscribe to www. youtube.com/iWantPH.

From C4

The trio attend what is supposed to be a party that will change their social lives, but they will discover the hard way that it is a cover-up for a dangerous prostitution ring. As the three ﬁght their way to escape, things become ugly and blood must be shed. Will they be able to make it out alive? Will the gruesome incident make their friendship stronger or only force them to turn their backs on each other? You Have Arrived is produced by Rein Entertainment and Cinebro. One

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5 2019

Falling in love with RURU and JASMINE CARA X JAGGER.

Jasmine Curtis-Smith and Ruru Madrid share a lot of 'firsts' in the movie. The film is Jasmine's first mainstream big-screen project while it's Ruru's first leading role in a movie.

HERE’S a movie that unspools tomorrow in major theaters, it’s is an unforgettable love story that tackles a former couple’s major conflict. The premise revolves around a girl named Cara who fights to remember everything in her power to forget a painful event that ruined her relationship with Jagger, the man she once loved, who, on the other hand, is fighting to remember his life after losing his memory due to a terrible accident. Jasmine Curtis-Smith is Cara, while Ruru Madrid is Jagger. The two collaborate for the very first fime in their very first mainstream movie in APT Entertainment and Cignal Entertainment’s romantic drama Cara X Jagger. Directed by lce ldanan, with an original story by Acy Ramos with a screenplay which she co-wrote with Glaiza Ramirez, Cara X Jagger promises to be an unforgettable love story. Although it took Jasmine almost seven years to hit mainstream films as lead actress, Cara X Jagger, according to her is worth the wait. “It’s a very different kind of love story,” says Jasmine. “Cara X Jagger is character-centric and though the conflict between Cara and Jagger is quite unusual, their story still represents what love is all about which is loving someone unconditionally and moving on no matter how painful a relationship has become.” Jasmine further gushes about how she will never forget her experience in filming Cara X Jagger and how excited she is to share the movie with everyone. “We have worked so hard to make Cara X Jagger an unforgettable movie. I am humbled and inspired by our team and I am all fired up to promote this movie. I hope everybody will support the love story of Cara and Jagger.” Ruru Madrid on the other hand, says doing Cara X Jagger is a dream come true for him. “I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I have always wanted to work with Jasmine because I truly believe that she is one of the best actresses of her generation. I am grateful for the trust that APT and Cignal Entertainment gave me and Jasmine. This is one project that I will never forget. I am very proud of Cara X Jagger,” he says. Cara X Jagger also stars Dante Rivero, Dino Pastrano, Gabby Padila, Miko Raval, Kenneth Medrano Michelle

It’s not a joke, Betong Sumaya is headlining a concert COMEDIAN, TV host and actor Betong Sumaya is all set to hold his ﬁrst solo concert entitled Betong’s Amazing Concert: Try Ko Lang Ha? on Nov. 21 at the Music Museum. In an interview with Manila Standard, Betong expressed his excitement over the show, which will feature a few big stars. “ I have a lot of guests. Sa dami nila baka ako pa nag yung magmukhang guest pag dating ng sarili kong concert,” the comedian said in jest. The GMA Artist Center talent is known for his comedic skills and knack for hosting but his fans are yet to witness a different side of Betong as a performer. Last July, he signed up with GMA Music and his ﬁrst-ever single under the label is now in the works. He revealed that even before he entered showbiz, he has always been passionate about music, “I’m so thankful and blessed dahil bagong ilalagay ko ito sa aking resume, isa itong pangarap na natupad dahil isa sa mga passion ko talaga ang singing.” Betong was also part of the successful Kapusong Pinoy Studio 7 Musikalye sa Brooklyn of GMA Pinoy TV together with fellow Kapuso stars Christian Bautista, Julie Anne San Jose, Rayver Cruz, Kyline Alcantara, Golden Cañedo, and Alden Richards. Currently, Betong is a mainstay of the country’s longest-running gag show Bubble Gang. He also stars in the primetime series The Gift. As he gears up for a concert, Betong couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed for this chance to showcase what he has to offer in the local music scene, “I thank GMA for the trust, never in my

Comedian Betong Sumaya is having a show at the Music Museum on Nov. 21.

life na inisip ko na magiging recording artist ako, but here I am now. I hope you join me in this journey.” He is also very thankful for the overwhelming support that he got from so many Kapuso stars whom he shares his “journey” with. Alden Richards did not hesitate one bit and in fact was the ﬁrst person to announce Betong’s upcoming concert. And of course, he is most excited to see what his Bubble Gang family led by Michael V., has prepared for him on stage. The guest list is currently growing by the day and we will not be surprised if the concert extends till the wee hours of the morning. Presented by GMA Artist Center and Michael Angelo Productions, Betong’s Amazing Concert: Try Ko Lang Ha? is directed by Juan Paulo Infante and under the musical direction of Jojo Diamse. Ticket prices are as follows: VVIP – P2900, VIP – P2300, Orchestra – P1500, and Balcony – P900. For ticket inquiries, you may contact Ticketworld at 891-999.

EXTRA INTERNATIONAL

For theaters, rise of streaming is a movie they’ve seen before Dee, and Sophie Albert.

***

How far will you go for your followers?

From one epic night comes the undoing of three social media influencers in the iWant original movie You Have Arrived, which follows Elisse Joson, Arielle Roces, andBarbie Imperial as they fight for followers and for their lives. Written and directed by Bagman creator Shugo Praico, You Have Arrived, which started streaming on the popular platform on Oct. 25, depicts the story of childhood best friends and desperate micro-influencers Arianne (Elisse), Flo (Ariel), and Dani (Barbie), whose lives revolve around likes, views, and followers. Problems start with the group’s leader, Arianne, whose social media account crashes after her friends livestream her being groped. Hell-bent on getting her followers back, Arianne then comes across an invitation to a mysterious gathering of influencers tagged as “Epik Party.” Even though her friends uploaded the video that caused her reputation’s downfall, Arianne invites both Flo and Dani, convinced that they will all bolster their social media statuses because of the event. Continued on C3

Arielle Roces, Elisse Joson, and Barbie Imperial of the youthadult digital thriller 'You Have Arrived'

US box office sales have risen steadily over the last 30 years as more multiplexes have been built.

IN HIS 60 years in the movie theater business in rural South Dakota, Jeff Logan has heard his share of gloomy predictions before, some of them long before the streaming era. Back in the 1970s, the arrival of cable network HBO was seen as a potential death knell, hitting ticket sales as subscribers paid to get a full menu of blockbusters soon after their theatrical release. But once competitors emerged and HBO no longer was able to offer as many movies, ﬁlm buffs came back to theaters, Logan recalled. The experience with cable, and with various home viewing gadgets—some now obsolete -explains in part why Logan and other theater owners remain relatively sanguine even as entertainment giants invest heavily in streaming. Logan thinks theaters will survive as long as they provide an appealing experience—and as long as movie studios ensure that new releases end up on the big screen. “People want to go out, but the theater has to be good,” said Logan, who took over the business from his father. “If it’s not special, then you won’t go.” Logan, 69, expects to add beer and wine at his three theaters as well as more food offerings, even if meals require more preparation and

won’t be as proﬁtable as the more traditional popcorn. B&B Theatres has spent heavily to upgrade its auditoriums. It also has added special “4D” productions and family screenings with play time for toddlers. The objective is the “eventizing” of cinema, said executive vice president Brock Bagby, whose great-grandfather was a founder of the Missouri-based chain. “It’s been invest or die,” Bagby said. “We believe in the industry and we’re investing millions and millions of dollars.” Resilient format In the popular conscience, movie theaters are sometimes lumped in with department stores and newspapers as examples of traditional businesses that have struggled in the Internet era. But while many single-screen venues have shut down as multiplexes have been built, the numbers overall do not show a dying industry. Since 1987, the total number of movie screens in the United States has risen by more than 80 percent, while overall ticket sales have more than doubled to nearly $12 billion in 2018, according to data from the National Association of Theatre Owners. Continued on C3